R. Kelly Returns To Solitary Confinement After Failed Freedom Attempt

R. Kelly's troubles behind bars continue with another round of solitary confinement.

The disgraced R&B singer recently returned to isolation following the discovery of a retired warden's phone number in his possession.

R. Kelly is no stranger to staying in solitary confinement, as he was previously locked up alone for his protection. However, his lawyer shared a different narrative about the incident.

According to new reports, Kelly has been locked up in solitary confinement for possessing the phone number of a former prison warden. His attorney, Beau Brindley, shared the news, claiming the singer was being punished over a misunderstanding.

Brindley explained that Kelly became associated with the retired prison warden when he got involved in a mentor program to help guide other inmates. The then-warden oversaw the program and allegedly gave Kelly his phone number when he left the prison.

The attorney told TMZ the warden did so in case Kelly needed to contact him for advice about the mentor program. Unfortunately, the phone number ended up getting Kelly in trouble when his cellmate was caught with a mobile phone in his possession, which is considered contraband in prison.

The cellmate's offense led to prison officials searching the cell for possible contraband and discovering Kelly's notebook with the former warden's phone number. Based on this discovery, the singer was placed in solitary confinement while officers investigated the situation.

When the outlet contacted the federal Bureau of Prisons for an update on Kelly's situation, a rep stressed that they could not comment for safety reasons. Kelly's incarceration at the FCI Butner Medium I in North Carolina began after he was found guilty of heinous crimes.

Kelly received a combined sentence of 31 years behind bars following guilty convictions in 2021 and 2022 on multiple charges of child sexual abuse and other crimes. These convictions stemmed from federal cases in New York and Chicago.

Kelly's return to solitary confinement comes months after he failed to regain his freedom. The Blast covered the story in June 2025, reporting that the embattled singer had lost his emergency motion for a temporary furlough from prison due to health reasons.

The motion was dismissed due to lack of jurisdiction because the temporary furlough plea was filed in the Northern District of Illinois. However, the claims the embattled singer highlighted stemmed from Arizona and North Carolina. Instead of feeling disheartened by the loss, his attorney claimed they would push forward.

Brindley noted that they would file a new motion to get Kelly released from prison because of the alleged threats to his life. He stressed that he was worried about his client, who was allegedly denied surgical intervention to treat the blood clots in his lungs.

The temporary furlough plea was denied shortly after Brindley dropped his claims about Kelly's treatment behind bars. The Blast reported that the attorney had accused prison officials of throwing his client in solitary confinement as punishment.

Brindley claimed Kelly was punished for speaking out against the prison, leading to his isolation and subsequently a murder plot. He accused three prison officials of attempting to end Kelly's life by using one of the other inmates.

The attorney claimed that while in solitary confinement, Kelly had been given an overdose of his anxiety and sleep medication pills. The dangerous dosage led to the singer's hospitalization on June 13, 2025, after he collapsed.

Days after Kelly's alleged murder plot made waves, The Blast reported that his fiancée had broken her silence about her parents' sex slave allegations. The drama began when Joycelyn Savage's family alleged she was still under Kelly's thumb.

They shared tales of horror, painting Savage as one of Kelly's alleged victims, who had been groomed to become his lover and sex partner. The family's attorney, Gerald Griggs, claimed they last spoke to Savage in 2019 because she was isolated from them.

Despite these claims, Savage defended Kelly in a social media post, arguing that their love wasn't built on pretenses. "I am not held against my will. I am not a sex slave. I am not brainwashed," Savage declared. She added that she and Kelly planned to wed and start their own family.

Will R. Kelly face more trouble behind bars?