R Kelly 'owes nearly $5m in taxes to US government'

Published Jun 16 2012, 18:46 BST  |  By Paul Martinovic

R Kelly currently has an outstanding tax bill of nearly $5m (£3.18m), according to reports.

Kelly was recently named the best-selling R&B artist of the past 25 years by Billboard and has sold more than 50 million albums worldwide. However, he has faced financial difficulties over the past few years.



The Chicago Sun Times obtained documents from the Cook County Recorder of Deeds that revealed the scale of the singer's debt to the I.R.S, with Kelly owing taxes from as far back as 2005.

Kelly has attempted to get up to date in recent years, with a $2.6m payment in 2008 and a payment of more than $1m in 2011. However, the document still suggests that he owes a total of more than $4.8 million to the federal government.

Last year, the 45-year-old's 20,000 square foot Olympia Fields mansion was pushed into foreclosure, with JP Morgan Chase Bank claiming that there were outstanding payments of more than $2.9m on the house.

R Kelly's new album Write Me Back is due for release next month.

Listen to R Kelly's new single 'Feelin' Single' below: