With Valentine's Day just a few day away, we can all use all the help we can get in the love department. So what better time than now to delve into the R. Kelly canon and pull out some valuable lessons on love? Is there anyone who knows the ways of love better than the R&B Thug? Exactly. He's been sharing his secrets of adoration for close to two decades now, dropping science on all types of romantic situations. Here are ten of the tips, tricks and tenets of love from the Pied Piper of R&B himself.
See also: - Justify My Love of R. Kelly - Fifteen love songs about inanimate objects - Six gut-wrenching Valentine's Day songs
10. It's okay to be single Well, it's okay to "feel" single, anyway. Even if the singleness is in some revenge-laden form, Kells reminds us how rad it is to be single, and what bad asses we are when we're single, and how many people there are out there who will love the shit out of us. Because when we're single, love isn't just about relationships -- it's about realizing how cool it is to love yourself enough to get out there and be, uh, single.
9. The key to a successful relationship: The Step Like Kells says, "Stepping is not just a dance; It's a culture. It's the way we live. It's what we eat, think and breathe." Stepping in the name of love is just a metaphor for moving through life with your partner together -- in a line dance formation.
8. And the other key: Real Talk As much a love is about being together and doing everything together, life isn't always so smooth. You have to be honest with your significant other, and establishing the truth right away in conversation is the only way to keep the lines of communication open. Set to a beautiful melody, R. Kelly walks us through a phone conversation many of us have surely had, keeping it real the entire time as he discusses trifling gossipers, screened calls and the burning of each other's possessions. Nothing is off limits -- just like our own love lives should be.
7. It's okay to flirt -- relentlessly And with as many people as possible. At the club, in the mall, in the restroom, at a restaurant -- while you're on a date with someone else, even. Flirting can be harmless if you keep it within reason. Plus, flirting can actually be healthy for a relationship -- as long as it doesn't become compulsive.
6. Sex is like weed Like smoking a fine dimebag of dro, sex can happen in a coup, in a jeep, at the crib, wherever. Because sex and weed are pretty much the same thing -- they can both get you high if you're doing it right. Contact high? Totally possible from sex and weed. The munchies? Well, that's up to you.
5. Hotels are definitely romantic Yes, the hotel rendezvous is overtly cliché. But Kells reminds us -- with his pseudo Western-latin flair (and Zorro mask?) -- that hotel hook-ups are totally acceptable. If you've never had sex in a strange place with your significant other, a hotel can make that possible. Even better, fulfill a cheesy motel fantasy on Valentine's day and scratch that off your bucket list.
4. Love does not discriminate While Kells applies this idea to the whole damn club, leaving no one out -- including that fine woman, the Statue Of Liberty -- we all can loosely apply this attitude to every person in our lives. Though the idea was first seeded by Young Money, Kells takes it to another level. Love can come in many forms and be between many different kinds of people. And we appreciate the notion.
3. Never rule out someone in your "friend zone" Going along with this idea that every person is a possibility in love, Kells shares that sometimes your best partner is your closest friend -- or has he calls it, the "homie lover friend." More than a friend with benefits, your homie lover friend knows everything about you and loves you for who you are, so why not give them a chance?
2. Have sex wherever you want Sex in the car, sex in a hotel, hell, why not sex in the kitchen? Keeping things fresh and interesting on the bedroom tip, no matter how long you've been together, is key to continually stoking the fire of a relationship. And who knows: You might be so irresistible to a partner while having sex in the kitchen that they want to get you pregnant. Or maybe that's just R. Kelly.
1.Don't feel guilty about having sex with someone you love This is what life is all about! Unabashed, consensual bumping and grinding with the one you love. Valentine's Day=Bump N' Grind day. So celebrate, already!
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