If R. Kelly Believes He Can Fly, Now’s the Time
It’s been 23 years since R. Kelly sang that he believed he could fly. That he believed he could touch the sky. That he thought about it every night and day. That if he just spread his wings, he could fly away.
At the time, he confessed in the same song that he was on the verge of breaking down. Today, he’s on the verge of going to jail. So if there’s ever been a time he needed to fly away, it’s now.
Facing 21 indictments of sexual assault against mostly underage women, he stands to face the rest of his life behind bars, but at this very moment he’s standing on the 23rd story of his hotel balcony facing almost certain death.
No human in history has ever successfully taken flight by flapping their arms, but R. Kelly isn’t just anyone, is he? He’s told us time and time again. Like in his humbly titled song, “The World’s Greatest.” Now I’m paraphrasing here, but it’s something along the lines of: I am a giant. I am an eagle. I’m the world’s greatest.
Reminding himself of this, Kelly stepped back into his hotel room so he could get more of a run up towards the balcony. And at the top of his lungs, he began to sing.
If I can see it, then I can be it.
And it wasn’t like he couldn’t see it. I mean, the window was right in front of him.
If I just believe it,
That, he certainly did.
There’s nothing to it.
Certainly an overstatement and physiologically absurd, but now was not the time for reason.
It was then that a loud voice coming from his front door interrupted him. “This is the police,” it said. “We know you’re in there. Open up or we’ll be forced to kick down the door.”
Kelly popped in his headphones, blocking the world out. He spread his wings and continued to sing.
I believe I can fly. I believe I can touch the sky.
Robert Sylvester Kelly (born January 8, 1967) was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, former professional basketball player, and serial sexual predator.
