Robert Sylvester Kelly (born January 8, 1967 in Chicago, Illinois) is a multiple Grammy Award winning American Urban R&B singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, and occaisonal rapper. He first appeared on the music scene as the founder and lead singer of Public Announcement whose smooth mixture of hip-hop beats, soul, and funk propelled the group's 1992 debut album Born Into the '90s to platinum status. Upon R. Kelly's departure from Public Announcement, he became one of the biggest-selling male artists of the '90s and one of the most successful male artists of all time.
