Akon American Rapper Born 1973 in St. Louis

Early life

Akon, whose full name is Aliaune Damala Bouga Time Puru Nacka Lu Lu Lu Badara Akon Thiam, was born on 16 April 1973 in St. Louis, Missouri. He is a Senegalese-American singer, songwriter and record producer. His father is the Senegalese percussionist Mor Thiam. Akon spent a large part of his childhood in Senegal, which he has called his hometown, and he learned to play five instruments, including drums, guitar and djembe. At seven he moved with his family to Union City, New Jersey, and for some years he divided his time between the United States and Senegal before settling in Newark. He attended William L. Dickinson High School in Jersey City and later studied at Clark Atlanta University.

Career

While still at school he became part of the Refugee Camp, the extended musical circle around the Fugees. In 1996 he recorded the single "Operations of Nature", which led to a contract with Elektra Records, but the song did not catch on in the United States and the deal lapsed. He later came to the attention of the music executive Devyne Stephens, who signed him to his production company, and the recordings they made reached SRC Records, a Universal imprint.

His debut album, "Trouble", came out on 29 June 2004. Its lead single "Locked Up", with Styles P, reached number 8 in the United States and number 5 in the United Kingdom. In 2005 he released "Lonely", which reached the top five of the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the charts in Australia, the United Kingdom and Germany. The album itself reached number one in the United Kingdom in April 2005.

Akon founded the label Konvict Muzik in 2004 and KonLive Distribution in 2007, and his second album, "Konvicted", was released in November 2006. It debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 with 286,000 copies sold in its first week, was certified platinum within seven weeks and triple platinum in November 2007. Its singles included "Smack That" with Eminem, which peaked at number two on the Hot 100, and "I Wanna Love You" with Snoop Dogg, which gave him his first number-one single there. "Don't Matter" followed as a number one in 2007. He also featured on Gwen Stefani's "The Sweet Escape", and he became the first solo artist to hold the top two positions of the Hot 100 at the same time on two occasions. In February 2007 he launched the clothing line Konvict Clothing.

His third album, "Freedom", was released on 2 December 2008 and produced the top-ten single "Right Now (Na Na Na)". He co-wrote Lady Gaga's "Just Dance". He also wrote and produced for other artists, among them Leona Lewis, and recorded the duet "Hold My Hand" with Michael Jackson, which Akon completed for Jackson's album "Michael" and which was released as a single in November 2010. In 2010 he released the single "Angel", produced by David Guetta, and "Kush" with Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg. A planned album titled "Stadium" was postponed indefinitely.

In 2019 he announced a new label, Akonik Label Group. That year he released "El Negreeto", an album drawing on reggaeton and Latin music, on 4 October, and "Akonda", which explores Afrobeats, on 25 October. Another album, "Beautiful Day", is listed for 2026.

Akon made his acting debut in the 2012 film "Black November" and starred in the 2014 action film "American Heist", alongside Hayden Christensen and Adrien Brody. In 2014 he also started the project Akon Lighting Africa, which provides electricity in fifteen African countries, and he set up the Konfidence Foundation for underprivileged children in Africa. In 2018 he announced plans, together with the Senegalese government, for a tourist city called Akon City, with an economy based on his own cryptocurrency, Akoin. In July 2025 the project was officially abandoned, and Akon said he would pursue more realistic ventures instead.

Recognition

"Konvicted" was nominated for Best Contemporary R&B Album at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards, and its singles "I Wanna Love You" and "Smack That" were nominated for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. His guest appearances brought two further Grammy nominations, and he shared a nomination for Best Dance Recording for co-writing "Just Dance". Forbes ranked him 80th in its Celebrity 100 in 2010, and Guinness World Records listed him as the best-selling artist for master ringtones, with 11 million sold by December 2007.

Personal life

Akon has nine children. He is a Muslim.