Author of Coming Forward: THE ABUSED

Jerhonda Pace

In 2008, 14-year-old Jerhonda Pace met her musical idol, R. Kelly for the very first time, standing outside the courthouse of child pornography trial.  Their interactions were short and friendly but the following year, Pace was invited to a party that Kelly was hosting at his Illinois mansion. After that, then 16-year-old Pace began a sexual relationship with the singer which lasted over nine months.  Pace revealed what happened to her mother who went to an attorney to help seek justice.  The attorney convinced her criminal charges were unlikely but helped negotiate a settlement, whereby Pace was silenced by an NDA. But as stories started to hit the media about R. Kelly an alleged sex cult, Pace decided she could no longer keep her secret in silence and spoke out about her ordeal. More than ten years after her first meeting with the singer, Pace published her autobiography Coming Forward: THE ABUSED, describing her life before and after her relationship with R. Kelly in 2019.   Since sharing her story on Lifetime’s Surviving R. Kelly documentary, Pace continues raise awareness through her non-profit organization, Crowned Queen.