There has long been speculation about the relationship between R. Kelly and his then-protege, up-and-coming singer Aaliyah. But Lifetime’s “Surviving R. Kelly” docuseries, which aired earlier this year, revealed a disturbing legal agreement between R. Kelly and Aaliyah’s family. The allegations suggest that Kelly sold the rights to his first three albums to Aaliyah’s family in exchange for their silence regarding the annulled marriage between R. Kelly and the late singer, who died in 2001 in an airplane crash.

Aaliyah was first introduced to R. Kelly by her uncle, music executive and manager Barry Hankerson.

The docuseries, which focused on R. Kelly’s 2022 federal trial for sex crimes, shed light on the non-disclosure agreement (NDA).

Aaliyah’s musical journey began at a young age, and her debut album, “Age Ain’t Nothing but a Number,” was released in 1994 when she was just 14 years old. R. Kelly was her mentor, lead songwriter, and producer. At the time, rumors circulated about a romantic relationship between the 15-year-old Aaliyah and the 27-year-old R. Kelly, Variety reported.

According to the docuseries, Aaliyah and R. Kelly secretly married in August 1994 when she was only 15 years old. The marriage certificate falsified her age as 18. The marriage was later annulled by Aaliyah’s parents in February 1995. Interviews with individuals close to R. Kelly’s camp gave new details about the alleged NDA forged between the now-convicted singer and Aaliyah’s family. Aaliyah’s family members would not to comment on these allegations during the production of the docuseries.

“It’s a harrowing document,” journalist Jim DeRogatis, who first broke the news of R. Kelly’s sexual abuse more than two decades ago, told The New York Times. “A non-disclosure agreement on both her part and Kelly’s, vowing not to pursue further legal claims for physical abuse. So, it wasn’t just an underage sexual relationship; he hit her, allegedly, according to that court document.”

This combination photo shows singer R. Kelly after the first day of jury selection in his child pornography trial at the Cook County Criminal Courthouse in Chicago on May 9, 2008, left, the late R&B singer and actress Aaliyah during a photo shoot in New York on May 9, 2001. Federal prosecutors are accusing singer R. Kelly of scheming with others to pay for a fake ID for an unnamed female a day before he married R&B singer Aaliyah, then 15 years old, in a secret ceremony in 1994 according to a revised indictment filed Dec. 5, 2019. (AP Photo/File)