By Diana Morose
From Bill Cosby to R. Kelly to P. Diddy to Chris Brown, each of these celebrities have been splashed across front page news for committing various crimes.
As a fan of movies, television and music, it may be difficult to hear about high profile cases of actors and musicians, especially those who played iconic roles or released critically acclaimed albums, being accused or convicted of committing heinous crimes.
Bill Cosby was accused by over 60 women of rape, sexual assault and child sexual abuse amongst other assault and abuse crimes allegedly spanning from 1965 to 2008. Cosby was released from prison June 30, 2021, after his 2018 conviction on charges of aggravated indecent assault was overturned. He served less than three years of a maximum 10- year sentence.
While he was in the limelight, R. Kelly faced accusations of sexual abuse dating back to the 1990s. He was prosecuted on child pornography charges in 2002 and was later acquitted in 2008 on all charges. He was placed back under public scrutiny after the release of 2019 documentary “Surviving R. Kelly” He was convicted on multiple charges involving child sexual abuse in 2021, and in June 2022 he was sentenced to prison on charges of racketeering and sex trafficking involving sexual abuse of minors.
On Feb. 12, 2025, Kelly’s appeal to overturn his conviction was rejected by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. He is currently serving a 31-year combined sentence.
In the case of Chris Brown, he has experienced legal troubles with things like assault charges, probation violations and is currently facing a $50 million lawsuit due to backstage assaults that occurred during his tour in 2024.
Still, amidst these allegations he just won a Grammy in February for best R&B album, for his album 11:11.
And the latest scandal involves P. Diddy, who was federally charged with sex trafficking and racketeering and faces several other criminal accusations with his criminal trial set to start May 5, 2025.
Most would agree that these crimes are abhorrent.
But there tends to be a subset of people that choose to ignore the crimes that celebrities have committed and actively continue to consume their art.
Many still see Cosby as “America’s Dad.” His work in television and comedy helped to change the narrative of how African American families were depicted on screen through the sitcom, “The Cosby Show.”
R. Kelly was the mind behind many hit songs that still get millions of plays to this day, whether that be at graduations or wedding ceremonies. Chris Brown’s songs similarly get millions of streams with Brown still being one of the most prominent male R&B singers in the music industry.
Diddy was a hip-hop mogul, winning numerous Grammy awards, and helped discover musical artists like Usher, Mary J. Blige, and Notorious B.I.G.
So, it begs the question: should a fan separate the art from the artist? Does the reason for fan loyalty come back to just the art?
Karon Thompson and Jaysha Epperson, seniors majoring in television and digital media, shared some of their thoughts on controversial artists.
“I think you kind of have to separate the artist from the art. You know what I'm saying like, I think everybody's kind of human and you know it is what it is at that point,” said Epperson.
Thompson had a similar, but a more nuanced stance.
“I think it depends on what you did but...I try my best to separate the artist from the art, although in a way, if you're still consuming the art, you're supporting the artist in a way, but I try my best to separate those things,” said Thompson. “It certainly depends on the action. Doing something like a sexual assault, or you know, mishandling other people is something I just can’t support, and I can’t align myself with."
Nadia Lewis, a senior majoring in public relations and advertising, believes fans of Black artists can be opportunistic.
“When it comes to Black artists committing crimes, I'll say that fans only care when it comes to getting the artists out of the crimes that they did just so that they can create more music or art,” said Lewis. “Like with R. Kelly and Diddy, sure a lot of people were upset about it, but I think there were people that wanted them out mainly so that they could get back into the booth to create more music."
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