Actor and singer Tyrese caused many reactions after he decided to publish a private letter sent to him by R&B legend R. Kelly from jail.
On Friday, the Fast & Furious star took to his official Instagram page, and he shared the message written by R. Kelly.
The entertainer, who has been incarcerated at the Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center, reached out to Tyrese upon discovering the tragic loss of his mother, Priscilla Murray Gibson.
Tyrese spent the past few weeks by his mother’s side after she fell critically ill while battling COVID-19 and pneumonia.
The artist received love and support from his fans as he shared his ordeal on social media.
Tyrese announced that despite the prayers and the doctors’ best efforts, his mother lost the fight against the illness on February 14th.
He wrote at the time: “On behalf of my family and everyone who ever spent any time praying for my mother, this is the saddest moment of my life. My sweet Valentine just passed away.”
R. Kelly caught wind of the sad news and sent an uplifting note to his longtime friend and collaborator expressing his condolences.
In his Instagram post, Tyrese thanked the R&B crooner for his gesture and explained why it moved him to tears.
Tyrese penned a lengthy caption where he confessed to crying for over 45 minutes after receiving the message from R. Kelly.
The actor wrote: “Yup….. just broke down in my trailer took me 45 mins to recover love you, Kellz.”
The “Best Man I Can Be” singer added: “damn, he is on the inside and still took time to get Condolences out to me and my family…Love you, Kellz……. No comments needed.”
Tyrese continued by revealing his hopes for Kelly, who recently contracted COVID-19: “Selfishly, I wish they could sneak a protools rig and a mic in your jail cell so that you can unload all of those ideas cause I know you don’t write all of your hits have been freestyled off the top…… But that’s just me.”
He concluded by calling R. Kelly, the “R&B King!”
Tyrese went on to share a screenshot of a text from Kelly that read: “Hey lil bro, my condolences to you about your mom. She is in a better place with my mom, and they both smiling down on us…I pray for you and keep it going. One Love. I know it a lot having to deal with this is the limelight, but keep ya head up.”
Aware of the incoming backlash, Tyrese decided to turn off the comments section on that particular post.
R. Kelly has been behind bars for several years. In the fall of 2021, after his trial was delayed several times, he was declared guilty for a long list of crimes, including racketeering and various sex crimes against “women, boys, and girls for decades.”
Multiple women have taken part in interviews and have appeared in documentaries to share that they were abused by Kelly, leading to a massive boycott of his songs and videos.
Kelly plans to appeal the verdict.
