Mus News

Thanks to an off-the-cuff comment by Keyshia Cole, word first got out in August that R. Kelly was planning to tour later this year — a tour that his reps denied at the time, as his criminal trial on charges of child pornography was scheduled to start the next month. Now that the trial has been postponed indefinitely, Kelly’s show is about to go on.

Cole misspoke when she first tipped off MTV News about the embattled R&B singer’s planned outing, saying, “We’re actually going on tour together in October.” Turns out, she should have said November: Kelly’s 39-date trek kicks off November 14 in Columbus, Georgia, and wraps up January 12 in Hampton, Virginia. Cole and R&B crooner J. Holiday are also on the bill, their respective label reps confirmed to MTV News — and on Thursday (October 4), Def Jam confirmed that Ne-Yo is in talks to join the tour as well.

Kelly’s representative told MTV News that once it became clear the trial, originally scheduled to start September 17, was not going to happen “anytime soon,” the singer had to make other plans. But there is one small catch: Kelly has yet to notify the court of those plans.

For the past five years, whenever Kelly has wanted to travel outside the court’s jurisdiction, he had to ask for permission — in the form of a letter to the state attorney’s office — to give prosecutors time to object (which they often did). However, the Illinois attorney’s office told MTV News on Wednesday (October 3) that Kelly has not yet sought permission to tour November through January. Kelly’s representative said that if permission had not yet been sought, it soon will be: “He knows what the rules are.”

Kelly was charged with 21 counts of child pornography in 2002 (seven of which were later dropped) for allegedly videotaping himself having sex with a girl prosecutors said was 14 years old at the time; he pleaded not guilty (see “R. Kelly: When the Gavel Drops”).

A new date for the trial has yet to be determined. The next status hearing in the case is set for November 2. If Kelly is convicted of the charges, he faces up to 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $100,000.

Dates for R. Kelly’s upcoming tour, according to Capitol Records:
· 11/14 - Columbus, GA @ Columbus Civic Center
· 11/15 - Atlanta, GA @ Philips Arena
· 11/16 - Greensboro, NC @ Greensboro Coliseum
· 11/17 - Birmingham, AL @ BJCC Arena
· 11/18 - Charlotte, NC @ Charlotte Bobcats Arena
· 11/21 - Philadelphia, PA @ The Wachovia Center
· 11/22 - Newark, NJ @ Prudential Center
· 11/23 - Uniondale, NY @ Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
· 11/24 - Baltimore, MD @ 1st Mariner Arena
· 11/25 - Washington, DC @ Verizon Center
· 11/29 - North Little Rock, AR @ Alltel Arena
· 11/30 - New Orleans, LA @ New Orleans Arena
· 12/1 - Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Arena
· 12/2 - Houston, TX @ Toyota Center
· 12/6 - Minneapolis, MN @ Target Center
· 12/7 - Kansas City, MO @ Sprint Center
· 12/8 - Indianapolis, IN @ Conseco Fieldhouse
· 12/9 - Memphis, TN @ FedEx Forum
· 12/13 - Las Vegas, NV @ Mandalay Bay Events Center
· 12/14 - Los Angeles, CA @ Staples Center
· 12/15 - Oakland, CA @ Oracle Arena
· 12/16 - Sacramento, CA @ Arco Arena
· 12/19 - Denver, CO @ Pepsi Center
· 12/21 - St. Louis, MO @ Scottrade Center
· 12/22 - Chicago, IL @ United Center
· 12/23 - Detroit, MI @ Joe Louis Arena
· 12/27 - North Charleston, SC @ North Charleston Coliseum
· 12/28 - Orlando, FL @ Amway Arena
· 12/29 - Columbia, SC @ Colonial Center
· 12/30 - Jacksonville, FL @ Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena
· 12/31 - Miami, FL @ American Airlines Arena
· 1/3 - Louisville, KY @ Kentucky Exposition Center
· 1/4 - Cleveland, OH @ Wolstein Center, Cleveland State University
· 1/5 - Buffalo, NY @ HSBC Arena
· 1/6 - Dayton, OH @ Ervin J. Nutter Center
· 1/8 - Greenville, SC @ Bi-Lo Center
· 1/9 - Savannah, GA @ Savannah Civic Center
· 1/11 - Richmond, VA @ Richmond Coliseum
· 1/12 - Hampton, VA @ Hampton Coliseum

For full coverage of the R. Kelly case, see The R. Kelly Reports.