Afrikaans singer Robbie Klay has admitted that he lied to the media when he first made the claims that his former mentor Jurie Els molested him.

Klay made the admission during cross-examination by Els' lawyers in the North Gauteng High Court on Monday.

Els has pleaded not guilty to three charges relating to his alleged sexual abuse of Klay.

Klay said when he went public with the allegations against Els, he denied that he had been sodomised as he was too ashamed to acknowledge it.

He also admitted lying in an interview with Huisgenoot about how old he was when Els first allegedly started molesting him.

The 23-year-old singer told the court he did not want to accept payment from the magazine but when it deposited R10 000 into his bank account he used it to settle accounts.

Klay said the only reason he told his story to the media was to warn other potential victims that anyone could fall prey to sexual predators.