Now that R. Kelly has been found guilty on multiple charges of racketeering and sex trafficking by a New York court, YouTube is finally taking notice of the disgraced singer's history of abuse. The platform has now removed Kelly's two official channels, RKellyTV and RKellyVevo, however, his music remains on YouTube Music.
As Reuters reports, a spokesperson for YouTube confirmed the removal: "We can confirm that we have terminated two channels linked to R. Kelly in accordance with our creator responsibility guidelines."
YouTube's head of legal Nicole Alston also confirmed the move [via Bloomberg], writing, "Egregious actions committed by R. Kelly warrant penalties beyond standard enforcement measures due to a potential to cause widespread harm. Ultimately we are taking this action to protect our users similar to other platforms."
Kelly will not be eligible to create new YouTube profiles.
Other streaming services — notably Spotify, Amazon Music and Apple Music — have not removed Kelly's music from their platforms as of yet. As evidenced by Spotify's artist information, he continues to rack up approximately 5 million monthly listeners.
Kelly is currently awaiting sentencing, which is scheduled for May. He faces possibly decades in prison and a minimum of 10 years behind bars.
As Reuters reports, a spokesperson for YouTube confirmed the removal: "We can confirm that we have terminated two channels linked to R. Kelly in accordance with our creator responsibility guidelines."
YouTube's head of legal Nicole Alston also confirmed the move [via Bloomberg], writing, "Egregious actions committed by R. Kelly warrant penalties beyond standard enforcement measures due to a potential to cause widespread harm. Ultimately we are taking this action to protect our users similar to other platforms."
Kelly will not be eligible to create new YouTube profiles.
Other streaming services — notably Spotify, Amazon Music and Apple Music — have not removed Kelly's music from their platforms as of yet. As evidenced by Spotify's artist information, he continues to rack up approximately 5 million monthly listeners.
Kelly is currently awaiting sentencing, which is scheduled for May. He faces possibly decades in prison and a minimum of 10 years behind bars.