Cara Delevingne Says She Lost 50,000 Followers for Speaking Out Against R. Kelly
Cara Delevingne is standing by her words against controversial R&B singer R. Kelly, no matter how many followers she loses.
On Friday, the 26-year-old model revealed that she had lost more than 50,000 followers on Instagram after posting a day prior that she would be boycotting the “Ignition (Remix)” singer.
“Every time I say something real, something I truly believe, something others may think of as controversial, something that makes people think and ask questions, I lose followers,” Delevingne lamented.
That doesn’t mean she regrets what she said. Quite the opposite, in fact.
“In 2019, I want to be more confrontational,” Delevingne said. “Confrontation IS NOT VIOLENCE btw, it’s communication. Something I still struggle with. I have always been taught to avoid confrontation at all costs, which caused me to be silent most of my life, silence causes suppression and suppression causes sickness. Not anymore!”
“The followers I lose clearly don’t agree with what I have to say, people that support the ideas and actions of others who are moving backwards and not forwards,” Delevingne wrote. “Goodbye silence and backwards followers, hello confrontation and forward thinkers. It’s going to be a loud year.”
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Kelly, 52, has recently come under intense scrutiny in the wake of the Lifetime docuseries, Surviving R. Kelly, which features interviews with Kelly’s family members, former friends and colleagues, and most notably women who claim that for decades the hit-making singer and producer used his power and influence to sexually and physically abuse women and young girls.
That docuseries inspired Delevingne to speak out in the first place. “I finished the Surviving R. Kelly documentary last night and I am so shocked and outraged at how long this has gone on,” she wrote on Instagram Thursday. “My heart goes out to all the victims of his emotional and physical abuse and their families.”
“This man is a predator that feeds of power and in my opinion is far worse than Harvey Weinstein and needs to be held accountable,” she said. “I am not trying to compare the two, my point is, Harvey is being investigated and R. Kelly is not.”
RELATED: John Legend, Meek Mill, Chance the Rapper and More Denounce R. Kelly: ‘Sick to My Stomach’
Delevingne went on to express regret about ignoring the reports about R. Kelly in the past. “We have ourselves to blame in this situation,” she said. “I knew of the allegations but failed to try and understand the severity of the situation. I still continued to listen to his music. Stop separating art from the artist, just because he sings like an angel, doesn’t mean he is one.”
She also applauded celebrities who have spoken out against R. Kelly, including John Legend, Change the Rapper, Jada Pinkett Smith, Lady Gaga, Keke Palmer, and Vince Staples. “I really hope that more musicians stand up against this monster,” she said — adding the hashtaggs, “#MuteRKelly,” “#MeToo,” and “#blackgirlslivesmatter.”
RELATED: R. Kelly’s Estranged Daughter Calls Her Father a ‘Monster’ as She Speaks Out in an Emotional Post
In the aftermath of the docuseries, The New York Times has reported that the singer is now under investigation in the state of Georgia. While no charges have currently been brought in Kelly’s other residence of Chicago, Cook County state attorney Kim Foxx held a press conference on Tuesday to encourage any victims to “please come forward.”
Representatives for Kelly, born Robert Sylvester Kelly, previously responded “no comment” to PEOPLE’s request for a response to the allegations made in Surviving R. Kelly and interviews with alleged victims in this week’s issue of PEOPLE.
In 2008, a Cook County jury found Kelly not guilty on 14 counts of child pornography charges.
If you or someone you know think they are being abused, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 (SAFE) or 1-800-787-3224 (TTY) now for anonymous, confidential help, available 24/7.
