R. Kelly’s daughter Buku Abi claims she spent several weeks in a ‘psych ward,’ contemplated suicide after he sexually abused her

R. Kelly’s daughter Buku Abi claimed she spent several weeks in a “psych ward” and contemplated suicide after the disgraced rapper allegedly molested her when she was around 8 years old.

“For a long time I was in a really hard space mentally and so I ended up in a mental hospital, a psych ward, whatever you want to call it,” the singer, born Joann Kelly, said in the new docuseries “R. Kelly’s Karma: A Daughter’s Journey,” per People.

“I hit a point in my life where multiple times, I had tried to take my own life.”

R. Kelly’s daughter Buku Abi, born Joann Kelly, alleged she spent weeks in a “psych ward” after he sexually abused her. Tvei Network She got candid about the traumatic experience in the new docuseries “R. Kelly’s Karma: A Daughter’s Journey.” AP

Abi, now 26, recalled breaking down in the car and telling her mother, Andrea Kelly, that she wasn’t OK as they drove to school.

“That day she called the hospital, and she ended up checking me in, and I didn’t leave,” she explained.

“I was there for about two and a half weeks. I was on really hard suicide watch. And then for two, three months after that, I was in outpatient basically, so I had to go there every day.”

“For a long time I was in a really hard space mentally and so I ended up in a mental hospital, a psych ward, whatever you want to call it,” she said. Tvei Network “I hit a point in my life where multiple times, I had tried to take my own life,” Abi continued. Tvei Network

Abi remembered the overwhelming feeling of not caring if she “lived or died,” and her mom, who was wed to R. Kelly from 1996 to 2009, seeing cuts on her wrist while they were shopping.

“She just immediately dropped everything and was asking, ‘What’s going on? Are you OK?’” Abi shared.

“She was really worried, and in that moment, I broke down, and I had to tell her like, ‘I don’t think I’m OK. I don’t think that I can do this. I don’t think that I’m going to make it through to live out the rest of my life.'”

The eldest daughter of the disgraced rapper recalled telling her mom, Andrea Kelly, seen here, that she wasn’t OK. Getty Images for WE tv “That day she called the hospital, and she ended up checking me in, and I didn’t leave,” Abi said. Getty Images for WE tv

Last week, Abi made the bombshell allegations that the “Ignition” rapper, who is a convicted sex offender, raped her when she was younger.

Reps for R. Kelly, who was found guilty of sex trafficking and racketeering in 2022 and convicted of child pornography in 2023, weren’t immediately available for comment.

Elsewhere in the docuseries, Abi recalled allegedly waking up in the middle of the night to R. Kelly touching her while she pretended to be asleep.

Andrea later found out her daughter was cutting herself. Tvei Network “She was really worried,” Abi recalled. Tvei Network

The eldest daughter of R. Kelly said she “didn’t even want to believe that it happened,” referring to him as her “everything.”

An attorney for the “I Believe I Can Fly” rapper “vehemently” denied the allegations.

“His ex-wife made the same allegation years ago, and it was investigated by the Illinois Department of Children & Family Services and was unfounded,” Jennifer Bonjean told People.

Abi was around 8 years old when R. Kelly allegedly abused her. Getty Images for WE tv He is currently serving 30 years in prison. Getty Images

“And the ‘filmmakers,’ whoever they are, did not reach out to Mr. Kelly or his team to even allow him to deny these hurtful claims.”

R. Kelly is currently serving a 30-year sentence and will be eligible for parole in 2045.

If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-330-0226, and call or text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988.