R&B singer R Kelly has walked out of a Chicago jail for a second time, shortly after someone paid $US161,000 ($A228,000) that he owed in back child support.

Kelly was ordered taken into custody on Wednesday by a judge after he said he did not have the entire $US161,000 he owed in child support.

As is done with other high-profile inmates, Kelly was held in a solo cell under round-the-clock observation.

It is not known who paid the amount.

The trip to jail was Kelly’s second in a matter of weeks.

Last month, after he was charged with 10 counts of aggravated sexual abuse pertaining to four women, including three who were minors when the alleged abuse occurred, he was taken to the same jail.

Kelly, whose lawyer said at the time that the singer’s finances were in disarray, then spent a weekend in jail before a 47-year-old suburban Chicago business owner posted his $US100,000 bail.

His lawyer and publicist told a similar story this week before and after the hearing in which the judge ordered Kelly into custody, with the publicist telling reporters that Kelly was prepared to pay $US50,000 to $US60,000 on Wednesday but was not able to pay the entire amount.

Kelly has denied any wrongdoing and has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

He has also very publicly proclaimed his innocence, telling Gayle King in an interview that aired this past week on CBS This Morning that all his accusers were lying about him.

He also talked about his finances, saying that people had stolen money from his bank accounts, though he offered no details.

-AAP