„I probably would have stayed longer had I not been pregnant.“
Singer Kelis accused ex-husband Nas of physically and mentally abusing her Thursday.
„It was really dark. There was a lot of drinking. There was a lot of mental and physical abuse,“ Kelis, 38, told Hollywood Unlocked CEO Jason Lee. „I probably would have stayed longer had I not been pregnant because I really did love him and because we were married. We weren’t dating, we were married. Like, this was my person.“
Kelis, born Kelis Rogers, was married to the 44-year-old rapper, born Nasir Jones, for five years. The pair first met at an MTV Video Music Awards after party in 2002. They tied the knot in 2005. In April 2009, Kelis filed for divorce due to „irreconcilable differences“ while she was seven months pregnant, The Hollywood Reporter wrote.
Singer Kelis said seeing pictures of Rihanna’s domestic dispute incident with ex-boyfriend Chris Brown encouraged her to leave Nas. Here, Kelis is pictured performing at Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival 2017 at Exposition Park on October 29,2017 in Los Angeles, California. Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
Kelis remained silent on the alleged abuse by Nas for nine years, but she admitted that the former pair allegedly „hit“ each other in the new interview. The „Milkshake“ singer said she was encouraged to leave Nas after seeing the infamous domestic violence photos of Rihanna following her dispute with former boyfriend Chris Brown in February 2009.
„When the Rihanna and Chris Brown pictures came out I thought about coming out because I also had bruises all over my body,“ she said to Hollywood Unlocked. „I didn’t say anything because I’m private. But seeing her the way she looked and then looking at myself… I felt embarrassed.“
She gave birth to their son Knight, 8, three months after filing for divorce. Nas was reportedly prohibited from entering the delivery room, the rapper’s lawyer told MTV UK at the time.
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The former spouses‘ divorce was finalized in May 2010, and she married real estate agent Mike Mora in 2014. Kelis and Mora are parents to Sheperd, 2.
Kelis‘ representatives declined to comment further to Newsweek. Nas‘ representatives did not immediately return Newsweek ’s request for comment.
Rapper Nas was accused by ex-wife, singer Kelis, of physically and emotionally abusing her. Here, Nas is pictured performing at JennAir’s ‚Unbound: The After Party‘ at Capitale on March 22,2018 in New York City. Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images for Jenn-Air
