Singer-songwriter R. Kelly is in court Wednesday in Brooklyn for the first day of his federal trial on sex trafficking and racketeering charges. Kelly has pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

The allegations of his abuse of women and girls have swirled for years, but interest in their stories reignited after the Lifetime documentary series “Surviving R. Kelly” debuted in 2019.

Here & Now‘s Scott Tong speaks with NPR’s Andrew Limbong about the trial.

Editor’s note: This conversation has mentions of sexual abuse that may be disturbing.

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.

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