R Kelly controversy: Christina Aguilera praises Lady Gaga for 'doing the right thing' by speaking out against musician
'I embrace all survivors of sexual and domestic violence and abuse holding a special place in my heart'
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Your support makes all the difference.Christina Aguilera has praised Lady Gaga‘s decision to remove her 2013 duet with R Kelly, “Do What U Want”, from streaming services.
Aguilera, who recorded a version of the song with Gaga and performed it with her during The Voice finale in 2013, wrote on Instagram: “Cool to see the version of this song I did with @ladygaga on the charts again — this is a reminder of women sticking together— and not letting a man take ownership of a great song/ moment... And if anything the message of this song remains that although you may have had my body, you will never have my heart, my voice my life or my mind.”
Sharing photos from their performance on The Voice, she added: “Being a survivor of past predators myself, these lines spoke to me, which is why I did the song. I embrace all survivors of sexual and domestic violence and abuse holding a special place in my heart, and you @ladygaga, for doing the right thing!”
Kelly is the subject of a new documentary that details the multiple allegations that he sexually abused women and underage girls. He has consistently and vehemently denied the allegations over the past two decades.
In a statement on Twitter posted on 10 January, Gaga apologised for the collaboration and wrote: “I stand behind these women 1000%, believe them, know they are suffering and in pain, and feel strongly that their voices should be heard and taken seriously.”
“What I am hearing about the allegations against R Kelly is absolutely horrifying and indefensible. As a victim of sexual assault myself, I made both the song and video at a dark time in my life, my intention was to create something extremely defiant and provocative because I was angry and still hadn’t processed the trauma that had occurred in my own life.”
She added: “I can’t go back, but I can go forward and continue to support women, men and people of all sexual identities, and of all races, who are victims of sexual assault. I have demonstrated my stance on this issue and others many times throughout my career. I share this not to make excuses for myself, but to explain. Til it happens to you, you don’t know how it feels. But I do know how I feel now.”
“I intend to remove this song off of iTunes and other streaming platforms and will not be working with him [Kelly] again. I’m sorry, both for my poor judgement when I was young, and for not speaking out sooner.”
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