R. Kelly – already serving a 30-year prison sentence for sex trafficking and racketeering – may see his legs shaking for a number of different reasons these days, but the disgraced R&B legend has at least one victory to celebrate this week thanks to Tik Tok.
Despite being on trial facing federal charges for allegedly coercing minors into sex acts, producing child pornography, and obstruction of justice, the 55-year-old’s fan base maintains their loyalty as his legendary catalog saw an uptick in streams at the top of the year.
Now that commercial performance is being reflected in digital sales as well.
See what we mean inside.
Peruse of the real-time iTunes sales chart sees ‘Legs Shakin’ – which was released nearly 10 years ago – besting the sales of current R&B favorites from the likes of Chris Brown, Beyonce, Lizzo, Silk Sonic, and more.
Real-Time R&B iTunes Chart
Found aboard Kelly’s 2013 album ‘Black Panties,’ the Ludacris-assisted cut failed to crack the Hot 100 at the time of its release but its current placement at #7 on the digital hit list suggests it may have a second chance at chart success.
That “second chance” is being aided by an explosive response to a viral dance challenge on Tik Tok that sees users show off their best moves to the song’s chorus.
See highlights below.
When paired with increased Spotify and YouTube streams, ‘Shakin’ could shake its way onto a Bilboard chart next week. Time will tell.
The renewed attention to members of his catalog comes as Kelly’s high-profile sex abuse trial rages on in Chicago.
Indicted on 13 counts against six alleged victims including accusations of producing and receiving child pornography, enticing minors to engage in illegal activity, and more, the GRAMMY winner has remained in law enforcement custody since his 2019 arrest.
The outcome of this trial follows a 30-year sentence he received in late 2021 for similar crimes. Click here to read more about that.