Surviving R. Kelly just won big at the 2019 MTV Movie & TV Awards!
During Monday night's telecast, the Lifetime docuseries took home the award for Best Documentary. Presented by Jameela Jamil and Mj Rodriguez, the documentary beat out At the Heart of Gold: Inside the USA Gymnastics Scandal, RBJ, Minding the Gap, and McQueen to walk away with the distinction.
Following the announcement of its big win, some of R. Kelly's alleged survivors featured in the docuseries took to the stage to accept the award with a moving speech.
"This isn't just a trophy to us. It speaks to the cultural impact that it generated from this documentary," Brie Miranda Bryant, Senior Vice President of unscripted development and programming for Lifetime. "This team believes in the power of numbers. Fifty-four individuals sat to tell this story… entire production teams assembled their shields to tell this story... survivors walked through the fire and stood again to tell the story… journalists, activists, bloggers, tweeters who continued to say the name of these survivors, these parents, helped to tell this story… thank you, especially to those individuals who never wavered despite how daunting this journey has been."
"To our survivors and parents, we know the journey doesn't start or stop with this journey but the world is listening now," Bryant continued, as some of those on stage fought back tears. "Because of your bravery, others are speaking without shame and being heard without judgment. Because of your courage, you created change and you survived."
Kelly, 52, has been accused of multiple sexual abuse allegations and inappropriate encounters with girls and young women over the years, but a renewed attention to the allegations came with the release of the docuseries in January, in which more women came forward with allegations of abuse against Kelly. He has repeatedly denied all the accusations against him.
ET's Lauren Zima spoke with three of Kelly's alleged victims -- Asante McGee, Lisa Van Allen and Lizzette Martinez -- on the red carpet at the awards show, where they spoke about the impact the series has had.
"It's been liberating to know how many people we've touched and how many victims have come forward because of the docuseries and just knowing that justice will soon be served," McGee said. "I just want all of his victims to continue coming forward, do not be silent. And, for me, it's not just about R. Kelly. It's about victims that are being victimized by everyday people. So I just want everybody to be able to come forward and I just want to be the voice for the voices."
"When we sat down, we didn't think any of this would happen," Van Allen added. "We just really prayed and hoped that our voices would be heard and that the industry and the world would listen up."
"For us to finally be recognized and be taken seriously and for people to listen, it's a great thing," Martinez agreed. "I just want him to be held accountable."
Back in February, Kelly was charged with 10 counts of aggravated sexual abuse involving four alleged victims, three of whom were minors. He pleaded not guilty.
In an intense interview with Gayle King for CBS This Morning in March, Kelly spoke out on the allegations against him. The singer continuously claimed that everyone featured in Surviving R. Kelly is "lying" and maintained that he has "absolutely not" broken any laws.
Last month, Kelly was charged with 11 new felony counts of sexual assault and sexual abuse-related charges by the Cook County State's Attorney's Office. The new charges against Kelly stem from the alleged sexual abuse of Jerhonda Pace, then a minor, that allegedly took place in 2010. Pace told her story in Surviving R. Kelly. He pleaded not guilty.
Watch the video below for more on Kelly.
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