Veteran radio personality DJ Envy probably has a lot of industry stories. The Queens, New York City native recently recalled an unsuccessful scheduled studio session with R&B singer R. Kelly.
DJ Envy sat down with VladTV for an interview. During the conversation, the 46-year-old Hampton University graduate spoke about traveling to Illinois in the late 1990s to work with Kelly.
“This was the mixtape days. So this was when I was like 19, 20,” said DJ Envy. “They reached out to me and R. Kelly wanted to do an R&B mixtape, flew me out to Chicago. And that was it.”
He continued, “It sounds crazy saying, ‘flew me out.’ I got flown out on a Friday. I get there, get in the hotel, nice hotel, five-star, everything’s first class. Friday, nothing. They didn’t return my call. No studio. So, I said alright. And it was supposed to be a weekend thing, so Friday, Saturday, Sunday.”
DJ Envy went on to say he got himself back to New York that Saturday night. The Power 105.1. presenter also added, “I felt like I was an Instagram model that somebody flew out. I was too ugly to holla at.”
A Federal Jury Convicted R. Kelly On Nine Counts
Around the time of DJ Envy’s failed meeting, R. Kelly released the R. studio album. That project arrived in record stores on November 10, 1998. The 3-time Grammy winner dropped the TP-2.com LP two years later.
R. Kelly has since become known just as much for being a convicted sexual criminal as he is for being a musician. The self-described Pied Piper of R&B is currently serving time in federal prison after receiving a 30-year sentence for sex trafficking and racketeering-related charges.
“Through his actions, Kelly exhibited a callous disregard for the devastation his crimes had on his victims and has shown no remorse for his conduct,” stated Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, at the time of sentencing in June 2022.
DJ Envy made plenty of his own headlines in 2023. A feud with Hip Hop artists Rick Ross and Gunplay dominated social media timelines earlier this year. He also got into a war of words with singer/actor Tyrese over the last week.
