R. Kelly is rationalizing his daughter's powerful condemnation of his behavior -- he believes his ex-wife cooked it all up, despite the fact he's been estranged from their child for years.
Sources close to R. Kelly say ... the R&B singer isn't upset with Joann Lee Kelly for breaking her silence and calling him a "monster," because he thinks his daughter was only parroting her mother, Drea Kelly's views. We're told he feels Drea's brainwashed all 3 of their kids into hating him.
Although our sources say Kelly loves and misses his kids, he seems to be ignoring the reality -- that he has no relationship with them -- and hasn't for some time now.
Kelly did have a musical collab in 2015 with Joann, who is a talented singer -- but we're told he thinks Drea drove a wedge between them after that, because she was furious Joann had been in the studio with him.
We're told Drea brought their kids to an R. Kelly concert in Atlanta a couple years ago, but since then he's had little contact with them, and he has no clue why things switched up.
However, anyone who's seen "Surviving R. Kelly" knows exactly how Drea feels about her ex ... and it ain't good. Worth nothing, Drea told us earlier this month she's open to Kelly reaching out to the kids because they're all adults now and free to make their own choices.
Joann seems to have made her feelings extremely clear, but we're told her father wants to repair the relationship.