Kelis Says Nas Abused Her For Years During Their Marriage

Kelis has alleged in a new interview that her marriage to Nas, which ended nearly a decade ago, was filled with "a lot of mental and physical abuse."

Speaking to Hollywood Unlocked, Kelis opened up about her five-year marriage to the "Illmatic" rapper, including what led to their divorce. Their relationship was full of “intense highs and really intense lows,” she said, due in part to their shared drinking and durg use.

“I’ve waited nine years to say anything. I have never talked about this man, ever,” Kelis said. “The amount of airing out that I could do, and I’ve chosen not to. Our kids will find out. They’re finding out now. I have never painted myself as a saint. Did he hit me? Mhm. Did I hit him back? Mhm.”

Nas would often drink “way too much,” she said, to the point that he wouldn’t always remember some of the violent incidents that allegedly occurred between them. Kelis said that seeing photos of a bruised Rihanna in 2009, after she had been abused by her then-boyfriend Chris Brown, led her to consider coming forward about her relationship with Nas.

“I had bruises all over my body at that time,” she recalled. But she said she "stayed for years after that" in hopes that they could make it work. 

But she said her pregnancy gave her push to end the marriage.

“I was pregnant and it was a mess and I felt like I wasn’t going to bring a child into this,” she said. 

Kelis gave birth to their son Knight in 2009, only months after filing for divorce.

The custody battle between the exes has grown heated in recent months, with Nas accusing his ex of violating their custody order by not letting him see their son over the Easter/Passover holiday. 

Nas has not responded to Kelis' allegations in the interviews. 

[Photo: Getty]