Akon

Net Worth

$80,000,000

Born in (City)

St. Louis

Born in (Country)

Date of Birth

16th December, 1973

Date of Death

Mother

Kine Gueye Thiam

Father

Mor Thiam

Children

Aliaune “Ali” Thiam
Ty Pittman
Mohammad “Mo” Thiam
Jhavor Thiam
Alianna Thiam
Journey Thiam

About

Akon or Aliaune Damala Badara Akon Thiam is a Senegalese-American singer, songwriter, record producer, entrepreneur, philanthropist, and actor from New Jersey, USA. He has several triple and double platinum songs and has sung in even Hindi and Spanish. His name is more familiar to the majority of the world as a featured artiste along side other singers, of which there are over 300 such featured songs! The Grammy nominated artist also produces records mainly for artists on his record labels- Konvict Muzik and KonLive Distribution. He also produced music for other artists such as Michael Jackson, Snoop Dogg, Lionel Richie, Leona Lewis, Sean Paul and Whitney Houston. His record label has produced many successful singers like Lady Gaga and T-Pain.

Early Life

Akon was born on April 16, 1973 to a Muslim family in St. Louis, Missouri. Despite being American, he spent a significant part of his childhood in Senegal, which he still describes as his "hometown". Music was already a part of his family and in his blood as his mother, Kine Gueye Thiam, was a dancer, and his father, Mor Thiam, was a percussionist. Due to this, it is no surprise that he has learnt to play five instruments, including drums, guitar and djembe. When he was seven, the family moved to Union City in New Jersey. From there, Akon would split his time in between the United States and Senegal until the family settled in Newark, New Jersey. New Jersey was not kind to him growing up and he struggled making friends as a child there. When he reached high school, him and his older brother were left to stay in the city while the rest of his family moved to Atlanta in Georgia.

Road to Success

Akon got his key into the music industry when rapper Lil’ Zane brought him along to music mogul Devyne Stephens\’ rehearsal hall. Stephens was the president of Upfront Megatainment and talents like Usher and TLC were being developed there at his hall at that time. There, Stephens and Akon met and developed a friendship and Stephens began to mentor the budding artist. Akon would stop by from time to time for advice. Eventually, Stephens trusted and believed in Akon enough to sign him up to his production company and started training him to be able to do music professionally. As Akon started making songs with Stephens, his songs began to catch the attention of Universal’s imprint SRC Records. SRC A&R Jerome "Knobody" Foster and SRC CEO Steve Rifkind were particularly interested in Akon’s “Lonely”, and they immediately flew on their private plane to Atlanta to meet the young Akon. Akon was already aware of Knobody and when they met, they immediately connected. This meeting resulted in Akon’s solo debut album, Trouble, which was released on June 29, 2004. The album led to the production of hit singles like "Locked Up", "Lonely", "Belly Dancer (Bananza)", "Pot of Gold" and "Ghetto". Trouble is a well-crafted mixture of Akon’s silky, West African-styled vocals mixed with East Coast and Southern beats. Akon seems to be obsessed with the prison theme as most of Akon’s songs begin with the sound of the metallic clank of a jail cell’s door with him saying the word "Konvict".

Challenges

Akon has definitely had some bumps in his career. His fourth album “Stadium” released 5 singles, none of which charted. His own mouth seems to be his enemy sometimes. He claimed that he had three baby mommas with whom he had 6 children. He has also previously denied the existence of blood diamonds and has since backtracked the claim, saying that his diamond mines are managed ethically. That same year, during a concert in New York, a fan threw an object at him. The fan, once identified was called to the stage by Akon. Akon picked up the scrawny fan boy and threw him on other fans, who were visibly upset. He was also not allowed to have a concert in Sri Lanka as the presence of a statue of Buddha in his raunchy music video “Sexy Chick” was deemed disrespectful and offensive.

Failures

His claim to have been in prison for committing crimes have also been questioned as just a ploy to market his prison themed music to the black community, which has a high incarceration rate due to high crime rates in America. In 2007, he came into fire for simulating sex with a 15-year old on stage in a club in Trinidad and Tobago. This led to brand endorsement and sponsorship loses, besides the obvious criticism from the media, especially the conservative media. That same year, during a concert in New York, a fan threw an object at him. The fan, once identified was called to the stage by Akon. Akon picked up the scrawny fan boy and threw him on other fans, who were visibly upset. He was also not allowed to have a concert in Sri Lanka as the presence of a statue of Buddha in his raunchy music video “Sexy Chick” was deemed disrespectful and offensive.

Achievements

Won for Favorite Soul/R&B Male Artist for American Music Awards in 2007|Nominated for Artist of the Year for American Music Awards in 2007|Nominated for 5 Grammy Awards|Made the Top Artists of the Year Chart in 2009, 2011|Made the Billboard 200 Albums of the Year Chart in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009|Made the Billboard Hot 100 Songs of the Year Chart in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010

Quotes

My ideas come when I least expect it, so I’ve always got to have a studio nearby or close by somewhere.
I love to just go to the movies, watch movies, listen to the scores and all that ’cause that’s, like, the next step for me.
I’m a polygamist. I can afford to have as many wives as I can afford to have. All Africans believe in it. My dad has four wives.