Akon is currently worth $80 million. But who is he? And what does he do for a living?
For that and much more information, be sure to read this piece to the end.
Table of Contents
Personal Information
Net Worth: $80 Million
Full Name: Aliaune Damala Badara Akon Thiam
Nickname: A-Kon or El Negreeto
Date of Birth: 16th April 1973
Place of Birth: St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Age: 47
Occupation: Songwriter, Rapper, Record Producer, Business Person, Philanthropist, Property Developer
Gender: Male
Height: 1.8m
Children: 6
Active Years: 1996 to Present
Early Life of Akon
Akon is a famous musician turned entrepreneur. He is known for his cool music and presently as a business person. But where did he come from? Where did he study and more? Here you will get to learn about that and more.
Aliaune Damala Badara Akon Thiam was born on 16th April 1973 in St. Louis, Missouri, to Mor Thiam (dad) and Kine Gueye Thiam (mother). His parent’s origin is from Dogon, a Mali ethnic group. Even though Akon’s parents are from Mali, he grew up in Senegal.
Mor was a percussionist while the mum was a dancer. Coming from an entertainment family, Badara learned how to play five musical instruments that comprise of drums, djembe, and guitar.
When he was seven years old, Damala and his parents relocated to Union City, New Jersey, before they settled in Newark, New Jersey.
Aliaune went to William L. Dickinson High School in Jersey City. He went to this high school with his brother. But at this time, Mor and Kine moved to Atlanta with other family members but leaving the two brothers in Jersey City.
Music Career
Akon began his music career after meeting with Devyne Stephens, who was the president of Upfront megatainment. The two met when Lil’ Zane with Damala to his rehearsal. Stephens heard of Akon’s musical ability and desired to help him.
They met severally, and finally, Devyne signed Akon to his music label. This happened in 2003, and his first global hit song under Stephens was Lonely, which he released in 2005. This was an international hit that earned him worldwide recognition.
A year later, he released his album ‘Trouble’ on 29th June 2004. Other songs in the album other than Lonely were.
- Locked Up
- Belly Dancer
- Ghetto
- Pot of Gold
The album’s highest rank of U.S. Billboard Top 200 was number eight. In Australia, the U.K., and Germany, the album was number one.
His entrepreneurial nature made him start his record label Kon Live Distribution, operating under Interscope records. At this time (2006), he released Konvicted his second album.
The album went to rank second on its first week on the Billboard 200. Additionally, the album sold 286,000 copies but went to sell over three million copies to date in the United States. RIAA certified the album by giving it triple platinum.
Akon’s third album was Freedom, which he released on 2nd December 2008. On the album there were famous musicians like;
- Lil Wayne
- Young Jeezy
His fourth album is known as Stadium, which he released in four versions. The first version was Stadium-Island, Stadium-Urban, Stadium-World, and Stadium-House.
Total Net Worth of Akon
Akon’s net worth is $80 million.
As per Forbes, Akon earned $12 million in 2008, $20 million in 2009, $21 million in 2010, and $13 million in 2011. This is through is music and performances. Also, at the time, he had his clothing line “Konvict Clothing.”
His other clothing line is called Aliaune. Per show, he earns not less than $230,000.
He owns a diamond mine in South Africa. He has a six-bedroom house in Atlanta whose approximate cost is $2.5 million.
Akon owns several assets and is currently building Akon city in Senegal. He is working with the Senegalese government on this project. The town is close to the Blaise Diagne International Airport.
Also, the city will be crypto-based as he already has his own cryptocurrency’ Akoin.’ Apart from Akon city, he is partnering with a Kenyan business mogul to build Mwale Medical and Technology City to end in 2023. The cost of building the city is approximately $6 billion.
Personal Life of Akon
During an interview with Blender, Akon revealed that he has six children with three different ladies. If you are a Chelsea F.C. fan, it’s fascinating to know that he is a fan of the EPL club.
Damala wanted to run for the U.S. presidency in 2020 but withdrew and supported Brock Pierce. He went ahead to become Pierce’s chief campaign strategist.
Conclusion
Akon’s career has not been easy. He was jailed for four years (1999 to 2002) for being part of an auto-theft gang. He once was denied a visa to Sri Lanka after Buddhists claimed that he disrespected them by using a Buddhist statue of his song Sexy Chick.
This is all we had about him. Be visiting our blog for new updates on Aliaune Damala Badara Thiam. Thank you for your time.