Entertainment News Roundup: R. Kelly's fate in jury's hands in sex trafficking trial; Kenya film board bans gay documentary, calling it "an affront" and more

Kelly's fate on Friday was in the hands of a Brooklyn jury, which began deliberating whether to convict or acquit the R&B superstar on sex trafficking charges. Kelly's accusers were motivated by money to lie about his alleged sexual abuses, a lawyer for the R&B superstar argued on Thursday in a final effort to persuade jurors not to convict Kelly of sex trafficking charges.

Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

R. Kelly's fate in jury's hands in sex trafficking trial

R. Kelly's fate on Friday was in the hands of a Brooklyn jury, which began deliberating whether to convict or acquit the R&B superstar on sex trafficking charges. Deliberations by the seven-man, five-woman jury began around 1:40 p.m. EDT (1740 GMT) after a federal prosecutor concluded her closing remarks, and U.S. District Judge Ann Donnelly instructed jurors on the law.

R. Kelly's defense says accusers had motive to lie. 'Convict him,' prosecutor says

R. Kelly's accusers were motivated by money to lie about his alleged sexual abuses, a lawyer for the R&B superstar argued on Thursday in a final effort to persuade jurors not to convict Kelly of sex trafficking charges. In his closing argument in Brooklyn federal court, Kelly's lawyer Deveraux Cannick portrayed the singer's accusers as former fans or jilted lovers hoping to cash in on his fame, whether through book contracts or media appearances such as in "Surviving R. Kelly," the 2019 Lifetime documentary.

Kenya film board bans gay documentary, calling it "an affront"

Kenya has banned a documentary about a gay Kenyan man's struggle to be accepted by his family and country, saying it was blasphemous and an affront to the constitution. The Kenya Film Classification Board (KFCB) announced a prohibition on the exhibition, distribution, possession or broadcast of "I am Samuel," on Thursday.

Singer Natalie Imbruglia mixes motherhood with 'personal' new album

Natalie Imbruglia thought audiences might throw tomatoes at her when she first started out in the 1990s, but more than 20 years later the Australian singer-songwriter is still making music, releasing her sixth studio album on Friday. "Firebird" is Imbruglia's first record of original music since 2009. It was written before the COVID-19 pandemic, but mostly recorded during lockdown in Oxfordshire, England, where she lives.

Britney Spears' attorney proposes that her conservatorship end this fall

An attorney for Britney Spears on Wednesday asked a Los Angeles judge to terminate the 13-year-old conservatorship that oversees her personal life and finances by the fall. In a filing submitted to Los Angeles Superior Court, lawyer Mathew Rosengart asked that the musician's father, Jamie Spears, be removed from the conservatorship by Sept. 29 and that a temporary replacement be named to wind down the arrangement.

Linda Evangelista files $50 million lawsuit over disfiguring cosmetic treatment

Former supermodel Linda Evangelista has filed a $50 million lawsuit over cosmetic procedures that she says left her "brutally disfigured" and turned her into a recluse. The Canadian model, one of the biggest figures on runways and magazine covers in the 1990s, said in an Instagram post that she had undergone treatment to reduce fat some five years ago.

Jagger calls Watts the rock that held the Rolling Stones together

The Rolling Stones get back on the road this weekend without drummer Charlie Watts, whom frontman Mick Jagger called the rock that held the band together. In interviews with Rolling Stone music magazine writer David Fricke, Jagger, Keith Richards and Ron Wood talked for the first time about their memories of Watts, who died in London a month ago at age 80.

Cinema returns to Somalia after decades of shut-downs and strife

Dozens of Somalis posed for selfies and chattered excitedly in rows of red, plush seats as they waited for the start of their country's first movie screening in three decades.

Among the crowd in the National Theatre was 24-year-old Kaif Jama, the writer and star of both films on the programme - the horror story "Hoos", about a single woman moving into an empty house, and a not-so-romantic comedy called "Date from Hell".

Prada strips dresses back, foulard inspires Versace in Milan

Prada deconstructed dresses at Milan Fashion Week on Friday, using elements including trains and corsets in a spring collection that explored seduction through clothes. Co-creative directors Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons, who joined the Milan-based, Hong Kong-listed luxury group last year, added silk trains on miniskirts, put corset lacing on the front of jackets and mimicked brassiere cups on knitwear.

Prince Harry, Meghan Markle visit New York's World Trade Center

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle got a bird's-eye view of the New York skyline as they kicked off their trip to the city with a visit to the observatory at One World Trade Center on Thursday. The royal couple is in town to attend Saturday's Global Citizen Live event at Central Park to encourage equal access to COVID-19 vaccines. It was their first joint outing since the birth of their daughter https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/meghan-gives-birth-baby-girl-called-lilibet-statement-2021-06-06 Lilibet 'Lili' Diana Mountbatten-Windsor in June.

(With inputs from agencies.)