Mar 08, 2019 at 10:34 am

Gayle King Talks Keeping Calm with R. Kelly, Being Mistaken for Robin Roberts on 'Late Show' - Watch Here!

Gayle King stopped by The Late Show on Thursday (March 7) and dished all about her recent exchange with R. Kelly, who denied sexual assault charges against him in a tearful and volatile interview.

The CBS This Morning co-anchor said when she went to interview the 52-year-old disgraced singer, she knew he wasn’t going to say, “You know Gayle, you’re right. I’ve done terrible things. I think we were witnessing the self-destruction of a man having a breakdown and that’s never a good thing to see.”

Gayle said she “feels his pain, his anger” but, she said, “he also knows what he’s done.”

Host Stephen also pointed to one of the notable comments from after the R. Kelly interview aired: Fox News host Jesse Watters said “hats off to Gayle King for totally redeeming herself after the Smollett fiasco,” seemingly referencing Good Morning America host Robin Roberts‘ interview with Jussie Smollett. His co-host Dana Perino pointed out it wasn’t King who interviewed Smollett, it was Roberts.

Gayle told Stephen she sent an email to Dana to thank her and said it was a “great compliment” to be mistaken for Roberts. “Thank you for letting him know we’re two different people and could you let the rest of your colleagues know that all black people do not look alike?”