Nelly, a prominent hip-hop music artist in the 2000s, is accused of raping a woman on his tour bus this morning at around 3:45 AM.
The alleged incident occurred in Auburn, Washington after one of his concerts. The “Dilemma” singer is currently touring the state with country music group Florida Georgia Line.
Booked on second-degree rape charges at 6:40 AM (PST). He was released from custody about one hour later.
The 42-year-old entertainer is claiming his innocence; his attorney has released a strongly-worded statement calling the serious allegation pure fiction.
Social media has been all over the story, and his name is still trending on Twitter. Nelly will have to work to rehabilitate his image regardless of the outcome in this case.
He is now mentioned in the same category as celebrities like Harvey Weinstein, R. Kelly, and Usher who faced a lot of scrutiny in recent months for their treatment of women.
Society has zero tolerance for this kind of behavior. However, some of Nelly’s defenders think that race might have something to do with it.
The people pushing this idea say that the alleged victim is probably white and this country’s justice system has a history of not being very fair to black men.
Rapper Nelly was accused of rape in Auburn Wa. Sounds like he had sex with a white woman. That area is 82% white.
— Tariq Nasheed (@tariqnasheed) October 7, 2017
ALL sex between Black men and white women is considered rape, EVEN if it's consensual, in a system of white supremacy. Nelly got caught up
— Tariq Nasheed (@tariqnasheed) October 7, 2017
Most commenters blasted this theory, but it is still gaining traction in some quarters. At this point, nothing suggests that the rape story has a racial element to it.
Nelly is one of the rare black artists who was able to attract country music fans without appearing out of place or losing edge with his core supporters.
While Nelly still has some fans ready to deny the rape allegation, a few of his critics are using videos from his shows to prove that he is no stranger to predatory behavior.
The “Over and Over” singer is facing scrutiny for a few things he has done on stage recently. The Texas native likes to invite a young girl on stage during his concerts to talk and sing to her.
In two clips that have gone viral, he is seen playing with children’s hair in a creepy way, his naysayers argue.
Okay…. I need a min to talk about how mf creepy Nelly was tonight. pic.twitter.com/428ojaAKpr
— Christine Nefzger (@violanefzger) October 7, 2017
He did this in Montana a couple of weeks ago too. So weird. pic.twitter.com/GqjVRzPkRp
— Nathan (Nate) Hutson (@natephutson) October 7, 2017
Nelly, who was booked on drug charges in 2015, is still scheduled to perform in Ridgefield, Washington tonight with Florida Georgia Line.
