Kelis Claims Pharrell Ripped Her Off with Music Contract, Nas Abused Her

Kelis recently sat down with The Guardian for an interview to speak about the 20th anniversary of her debut album, Kaleidoscope, and she also looked back on her music career. 

She spoke about working with Pharrell and Chad Hugo, who together make up The Neptunes, after forming a friendship while she was attending a performing arts school. Kelis explained that she thought she and Pharrell were close friends, which is why she was confused when she claims they "blatantly lied to and tricked" her with her music contract. 

Kelis addressed the contract, stating she "was told we were going to split the whole thing 33/33/33, which we didn’t do." Kelis added, "Their argument is: ‘Well, you signed it.’ I’m like: ‘Yeah, I signed what I was told, and I was too young and too stupid to double-check it." 

When asked why she wasn't mad, Kelis, who runs a farm with her husband in California, stated, "I think if it were not for my faith, I feel like that would probably be the case. It’s very clear to me, especially being on a farm, that whatever you put in the ground, that is what’s going to come back to you." She also responded to being asked about working with Pharrell again, saying, "Ummm, at that point there’s having faith and there is also just stupidity." 

During the conversation, Kelis also opened up about her marriage to Nas, which she says involved the famed rapper physically abusing her. Kelis left the marriage after nine years while 7-months pregnant with their son, Knight. She revealed that being pregnant was a wake-up call, along with seeing photos of Rihanna after being beaten by Chris Brown. 

Kelis explained, "The red flags were there. I was really young and didn’t know that love isn’t enough. It was crazy from the start, but I think as girls we’re taught that that’s what love is, like you can’t breathe without them. What kind of shit is that? I want to breathe!" 

Nas has denied abusing Kelis and he has claimed that she has kept him from seeing their son, which she rolled her eyes at. She then added, "Any rational person would look at this situation and say [to Nas]: ‘Well, if you want to see [your child], you have to actually show up!’ My kid is a really happy child, because I don’t tell him when [his father] says he’s going to come and doesn’t show up." 

Source: The Guardian