R. Kelly’s projected release date is now listed as December 21, 2045, marking nearly two more decades behind bars for the disgraced R&B star.
Kelly has been incarcerated at a medium security federal prison in Butner, North Carolina, since April 2023. He is serving a lengthy sentence following convictions in two major federal cases involving sex trafficking, racketeering and child sexual exploitation.
Prosecutors said Kelly used his celebrity status to recruit and control underage girls and young women, subjecting them to years of physical, emotional and sexual abuse. Court testimony detailed a pattern of manipulation and intimidation, with victims describing strict rules, isolation from family and punishment when they disobeyed.
In 2022, Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in one federal case. He later received an additional 20-year sentence in a separate case, with most of the time set to run concurrently. The updated release date reflects the remaining portion of those combined sentences.
Kelly has continued to pursue legal challenges, though none have succeeded. In August 2025, he filed a motion asking to remove the U.S. Attorney’s Office from his case, alleging misconduct.
A federal judge denied the request, calling it “extreme” and unsupported by evidence. His motions for a new trial and for home confinement have also been rejected, leaving few legal options remaining as his sentence stands.