R. Kelly‘s former assistant testified during the singer’s racketeering trial in the Eastern District of New York courthouse in Brooklyn on Friday (Aug. 20), detailing his bizarre experience of being under Kelly’s employment.
Anthony Navarro, has worked with other artists including Jay-Z, Kanye West and Taylor Swift and now owns his own recording studio, said that no other employment experience was quite like working for Kelly.
“It was a weird time for me. The things you had to do were just a bit uncomfortable,” said Navarro. “It was almost like a twilight zone. You went into the gate and it was like a different world. It was this strange place.”
During his testimony, Navarro appeared nervous, fidgeting with his face mask held in his hand and often taking long pauses before delivering responses. He went on to say during cross-examination by defense attorney Nicole Blank Becker that he witnessed Kelly verbally abuse employees. While Navarro never told prosecutors about the abuse in previous meetings with the government, the memories resurfaced during his testimony. After his time working for Kelly, Navarro filed a lawsuit against the singer, on the basis of unpaid overtime wages. He also said that Kelly “fined” him for breaking a rule, that Navarro referred to as “something stupid that didn’t make any sense.”
When Becker asked Navarro about Kelly’s literacy, Navarro confirmed that he was told the famed songwriter could not read, but wasn’t sure about his writing abilities. Throughout their cross-examination, the defense was determined to prove Kelly was not withholding food or access to a bathroom from his “guests” and was not holding them against their will. Becker asked Navarro about the number of bathrooms and stocked fridges throughout Kelly’s Olympia Fields mansion and basement studio, referred to as “The Chocolate Factory.”
While monitoring the security cameras, Navarro testified to seeing two females jumping the gate of Kelly’s home, who Navarro said looked “really young,” like “mid-aged teenagers.” He went on to outline some of the “rules” Kelly set, including no talking with his female guests. Navarro said he once transported a “girlfriend” of Kelly from Alabama to Georgia, and did not speak to her at all during the drive, which lasted over three hours.
On Navarro’s recording studio website, it says he “took a leap of faith” accepting a gig working for Kelly, where he “learned from the best engineers and producers in the industry.”
Throughout the testimony, Kelly was seated in a grey suit, with his neck tattoo peeking out of the collar. He remained composed and motionless, aside from leaning over to make a comment to Becker, seated at his side.
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