Nelly Arrested for Rape, Fans React To Allegations Against Rapper

Rapper Nelly has been arrested after he allegedly raped a woman on a tour bus.

According to TMZ, the "Hot In Herre" rapper was booked on second degree rape charges on Saturday morning after an unidentified woman claimed she was raped on his tour bus in Washington earlier in the morning. Nelly has been touring in the state with Florida Georgia Line, and a show is still currently scheduled for tonight in Ridgefield, Washington.

A lawyer for the 42-year-old singer has released a statement on the entertainer's behalf, saying that the story is a complete fabrications and Nelly is prepared to pursue any route he can that will absolve him of the crime.

"Nelly is the victim of a completely fabricated allegation. Our initial investigation clearly establishes the allegation is devoid of credibility and is motivated by greed and vindictiveness. I am confident, once the scurrilous accusation is thoroughly investigated, there will be no charges," his lawyer said. "Nelly is prepared to pursue all legal avenues to redress any damage caused by this clearly false allegation."

Several fans quickly jumped to the rapper's defense on social media, accusing the woman of making up the story, or cracking jokes about his hit song and saying the woman misinterpreted the lyrics.

Others also quickly took to social media to critique the outrage against the claims against him however, noting that the same people insisting he was innocent had previously reacted to claims against other famous men differently.

Others also expressed regret over the story because of other news that had broken in the last year about other famous rappers and hip hop/R&B artists from the late 90s and early 2000s, which indicated that R. Kelly had held underage women captive as sex slaves, and that Usher knowingly spread herpes to women.

The news of Nelly's arrest came after a video of him performing at the concert circulated on social media that showed him singing to a young girl on stage, holding her hand and twirling her hair. However, according to Rolling Stone, the woman who is accusing him of rape was someone the rapper picked up after heading to Seattle following a show at Auburn's White River Ampitheatre on Friday night. The report alleges that the alleged rape took place after the rapper brought the woman to his bus.

Nelly rose to fame with a solo career that began in 2000, with the release of his debut album "Country Grammar." His success continued with the follow-up, "Nellyville," which included the hit tracks, "Hot In Herre" and "Dilemma," feat. Kelly Rowland. Other famous tracks have included "Just a Dream," "Gone," and "Body On me."

News of the arrest also comes on the heels of a major figure in Hollywood being accused of committing decades of sexual harassment and abuse against women. Harvey Weinstein, owner of The Weinstein Company with his brother, was accused of decades of sexual harassment by women, including actress Ashley Judd, in a New York Times article on Thursday.