R Kelly has sought permission to travel to the Middle East to perform several concerts.
According to a new court filing, the cash-strapped singer has struggled to secure work in the US since he was arrested in February on sex abuse charges.
The singer intends to perform up to five concerts in Dubai next month, a motion filed in Cook County Circuit Court states. The new motion does not mention any venues or how much Kelly stands to earn from the concerts – which were thought to have been organised before his arrest.
The motion claims that Kelly is struggling to pay child support, mounting legal fees and his everyday expenses after a string of concerts in Illinois were cancelled and his music was pulled from streaming services.
“He cannot work, and consequently cannot make a living if he is confined to Illinois, or even the United States,” the five-page court document states.
“Mr. Kelly needs to generate income.”
It’s thought that a judge could rule on the travel request at a hearing on Friday.
The news follows Kelly pleading not guilty to 10 counts of sexual abuse last month, before being released from jail this month on $100,000 bail.
Claims of Kelly’s sexual activity with underage girls have resurfaced since the Lifetime documentary series Surviving R Kelly was aired in January. Buzzfeed had previously reported in 2017 that Kelly ran a sex cult. He has constantly denied all wrongdoing.