R. Kelly's Aust, NZ tour post deleted

R. Kelly's social media post announcing a tour of Australia, New Zealand and Sri Lanka has been deleted after a backlash against the embattled musician.

R. Kelly's tweet that he will going to Australia, New Zealand and Sri Lanka has been deleted after a backlash, including an Australian MP's suggestion that he could be barred from the country.

The embattled musician made the announcement on social media on Tuesday.

"See y'all soon" R. Kelly's post had said, accompanied by a picture of Kelly and the declaration "The King of R&B."

No dates or venues were revealed.

The tour tweet was deleted after a backlash from Twitter users who urged fans not to buy concert tickets and criticised the announcement, pointing out the irony that "R. Kelly is going on tour instead of jail".

No new criminal charges have been filed against Kelly since the most recent alleged sexual misconduct was brought to light.

Several previous cases have been settled out of court. In 2008, he was found not guilty in a trial on child pornography charges.

Kelly's career has been stifled since a MuteRKelly campaign gained momentum last year to protest his alleged sexual abuse of women and girls, which Kelly denies.

Lifetime's documentary series Surviving R. Kelly last month drew even more attention to the allegations, and his record label has reportedly dropped him.

Australia has denied entry to other foreigners on character grounds, among them troubled R&B singer Chris Brown, convicted classified document leaker Chelsea Manning, anti-vaxxer Kent Heckenlively and Gavin McInnes, founder of the all-male far-right group Proud Boys.

"If the Immigration Minister suspects that a non-citizen does not pass the character test, or there is a risk to the community while they are in Australia, he should use the powers he has under the Migration Act to deny or cancel their visa," federal Labor MP Shayne Neumann said in a statement.

Australia's Home Affairs Department said it did not comment on individual cases. But the department said in a statement there were strong legal provisions to block entry to anyone "found not to be of good character".

Kelly is a multiplatinum R&B star who has not only notched multiple hits for himself, but also for many high-profile performers.


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Source: AAP


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