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SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — R&B singer R. Kelly made a paid appearance early Sunday at a club in Illinois' capital city, but the fans who each shelled out $50 to $100 for tickets got only a 28-second performance, followed by a half-hour meet-and-greet.

Hours before his appearance at the Dirty South Lounge in Springfield, Kelly posted a video on Instagram asking the media to "take it easy" on him because "this is how I got to get paid now, for right now."

Kelly, 52, was charged in February with 10 counts of aggravated sexual abuse that accused him of assaulting four women during a roughly 10-year period starting in the late 1990s. Three of the accusers were underage at the time. He has pleaded not guilty and denied any wrongdoing.

Since his arrest, the cash-strapped singer has struggled to get work in the U.S., Kelly's lawyer Steve Greenberg wrote in a motion last month seeking permission for Kelly to perform in Dubai and meet with members of the sheikhdom's royal family.