Singer Sparkle Defends Herself Against R. Kelly Grooming Claims

February 04, 2026

Sparkle denied helping R. Kelly abuse her niece, Reshona, after explosive book claims, saying she contacted DCFS and testified against him.

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Sparkle dropped a statement Tuesday that hit different. The R&B singer went hard defending herself after her niece, Reshona Landfair, put her on blast in a new book.

Reshona just released Who’s Watching Shorty?, in which she tells her story as the 14-year-old girl in R. Kelly’s tape. But she also said Sparkle pushed her to get close to the singer.

That’s where Sparkle drew the line.

“I am relieved that Reshona is finally free to speak her truth and begin her healing journey,” Sparkle posted on Instagram. “In addition to justice, I have always wanted healing and peace for her.”

But then she got real about the accusations.

“Any suggestion that I groomed, facilitated, or enabled harm to my niece is untrue and deeply painful,” she said. The singer made it clear she wasn’t having it.

Sparkle laid out exactly what she did when she found out what was happening. She said when Reshona’s parents let her spend time alone with R. Kelly, she called DCFS right away. That’s the Department of Child and Family Services.

The singer also reminded everyone that she testified against R. Kelly in 2008. She said she did it even though people pressured her not to.

“I cooperated fully and testified under oath, despite immense pressure not to do so,” Sparkle wrote. “I did this because protecting my niece from abuse and telling the truth mattered more to me than money and my career.”

Reshona’s book came out this week and she’s been doing interviews. For 25 years, people knew her only as “Jane Doe” in the R. Kelly case.

Now she’s telling her full story.

In the Rolling Stone interview, Reshona said Sparkle told her to sit on R. Kelly’s lap and rub his head. She said that’s how the whole thing started when she was 12.

But Sparkle has been saying this stuff isn’t true for years. Back in 2022, when Reshona testified at R. Kelly’s trial, Sparkle posted a video calling her niece’s claims lies.

The family drama goes way back. Sparkle was R. Kelly’s protégé in the ’90s. That’s how he met Reshona’s family. R. Kelly became close to them and even served as Reshona’s godfather.

Sparkle said she started ringing alarm bells in the late ’90s. But by then, R. Kelly had already been grooming Reshona for years. The singer said Reshona is still dealing with what happened to her.

“This is the beginning of Reshona’s lengthy deprogramming journey,” Sparkle wrote. “It is true that she is a survivor of years of abuse, still learning to process what happened to her and who is responsible.”

The whole situation shows how R. Kelly manipulated entire families. He didn’t just target young girls. He got their relatives to trust him first.

Reshona’s book details how R. Kelly controlled her life for over 10 years. She said he kept her isolated and made her call him “Daddy.” The abuse started when she was 12 and continued into her twenties.

R. Kelly was convicted in 2021 and 2022 on federal charges. He’s serving 30 years in prison for sex trafficking and other crimes. Multiple women testified about his abuse. Sparkle ended her statement by wishing Reshona well.

“I wish her continued healing and peace as she continues to not only find her voice, but hopefully require accountability from those closest to her,” she wrote.

The singer made it clear she supports Reshona’s healing journey. But she won’t let anyone say she helped R. Kelly hurt her own family.

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