Interview with Akon

Akon, artist, visionary and philanthropist.

Having rose to fame in the mid-2000s with a string of Grammy-nominated records, his unique blend of hip-hop with West African vocals, fruit of his Senegalese and American upbringing, has led to collaborations with superstars like Gwen Stefani, Snoop Dogg, Eminem and Michael Jackson. Over the past few years, Akon’s name has been more often linked to his philanthropic work, including Akon Lighting Africa, which provides electricity across the African continent and his Konfidence Foundation. More recently, he has been hitting the headlines with his multibillion-dollar project to create Akon City, a futuristic and sustainable city in Senegal, and his cryptocurrency Akoin. The Citizen were lucky enough to meet up with Akon during one of his rare downtimes which he chose to spend at Antigua’s chic Hodges Bay Resort.

You have so many projects on your hands other than music. So, what inspires you?

A lot of what drives me comes from being raised both in Senegal and in the West, which has allowed me to see both cultures and exposed me to how much we didn’t have. As I started to mature and got involved in business, I also started to see how much value Africa has and how valuable it is to the rest of the world. There has always been a crazy imbalance when you see how it is the richest continent in terms of natural resources, yet the most challenging continent at the same time because of those same resources.

Why did you start Akon Lighting Africa?

Although 25 percent of African cities are lighted, 75 percent of the rest of the continent is in complete darkness and that’s actually where most of the population resides. We started the Konfidence Foundation and began remodelling existing schools in Senegal before moving onto building new schools. In the process of construction, we realised that there were no lines to connect the electricity. It wasn’t such a huge problem as schools are open during the daytime, but during storms or rainy days was when the lack of electricity was noticeable. I used to visit my grandmother in Senegal who had no electricity or running water. I couldn’t not visit her, but I also didn’t want to go there and be uncomfortable either! I wanted to provide electricity for her – and that was where everything started really. I began researching solar energy, and upon discovering that the Chinese had built a huge solar infrastructure to gain US business that had never come to fruition, I realised it could be an opportunity for my African projects. The Chinese loved the idea and gave me a billiondollar credit line, consequently allowing me to meet with African governments and create competent plans to electrify rural areas. I was able to offer them five-year agreements to pay back the money. This highly successful system meant that we grew from one country to 16 countries in just three years. On the back of that, I started Akon Lighting America where our initiative is to transform dirty energy into clean energy. We have a plan called Black Sunrise which was created to decommission coal plants in urban areas. The diversity inclusion programme has helped us since we are the only African American solar company that can play on that level in the whole of the US.

How did the idea for Akon City come about?

Now that we have the energy situation in Senegal under control, I’ve gone back to building the economy itself. And that’s where the concept of Akon City arose. The whole idea of Akon City is to build a sustainable, renewable and green city in Senegal - but the idea can be copied and pasted to anywhere in Africa. Akon City is currently a four-to-six-billion-dollar project with a ten-year construction programme set out in three phases on 2,000 acres of waterfront. We’re halfway into stage one with financing from the UK, the Middle East and and some African NGOs. I wanted African entrepreneurs to be part of the process in order to empower the people and provide an incentive to invest back home.

I ALWAYS FELT LIKE A GLOBAL CITIZEN BEFORE IT BECAME A THING. FOR ME, IT IS SOMEONE WHO BRINGS VALUE TO THE WORLD.

In which other countries are you planning to replicate Akon City?

We are just finishing up the solar studies in Senegal and plan to be in the construction phase by April. We will then go to Rwanda followed by Uganda and the Congo. We chose these countries because they’ve already adapted to green energy programmes. They’ve also educated the population to understand our motive which makes it easier to move forward.

How did your cryptocurrency Akoin come about?

As we were planning the city, I realised that one of the biggest issues in Africa is that there are no stable currencies you can trade outside the continent. The idea of the cryptocurrency was to not only give the power back to the people from a financial standpoint, but also allow it to be used in their day-to-day lives. In Akon City it will be used for everything - electricity, phone bills, cable, food in the market you name it. Akoin was very successful in Kenya where we did our trial, and we’ve also been using Mwale Medical and Technology City in Senegal as a beta test, where all the payroll, prescriptions and food and snacks are being done through Akoin. As we franchise Akon City in Rwanda, the Congo and Uganda, the Akoin system will go alongside it. The whole idea is to have that same wallet on a global level. We have built a platform to allow you to go to any ATM and trade Akoins for any FIAT currency you want anywhere in the world. We’ve launched internationally on the Global Crypto Exchange where it’s currently 50 cents on the dollar, which is incredible considering it has only been trading for nearly five months. We know it’s going to be huge.

You dreamed big and became successful. What would you say to young entrepreneurs starting out?

The first thing is that it can’t be about the money. This is a mistake that a lot of people make. I would let the younger generation know that passion is the way out. We are all gifted in something and we would do that something for free because we love it. Whatever that is, that is going to be the biggest asset that you have. You do it all the time because you love it and if you do it all the time, then you get good at it, the skillset and passion will be there, and you can build a business around that. Once you understand this, you can wake up every morning doing something you love and making good money doing it.

We are all gifted in something and we would do that something for free because we love it. Whatever that is, that is going to be the biggest asset that you have.

Why is giving back so important for you?

A lot of it comes from having been raised in Africa without very much, and then moving to the US and going from “not having” to “having” almost overnight. It has certainly given me better empathy for people with nothing.

What does being a global citizen mean to you?

It means that I belong to the globe; I’ve always believed that. Even when I was doing music, I would never box myself into a specific genre - I always wanted to do world music and travel the globe to share my music, share my philanthropy, share my businesses, share my relationships and share my experiences. I always felt like a global citizen before it became a thing. For me, it is someone who brings value to the world.

What is so special about Antigua?

I love the island – I’ve visited many times before. It’s so beautiful and a small paradise that a lot of people don’t know exists as it’s often overlooked by other islands.

What is 2021 bringing you?

I am dropping another album in April. It’s called #1 because it’s my first official album that I’m releasing without being attached to a major label. I’m doing it completely independently. And of course, no matter what position in the chart it reaches, it is still going to be number 1! It’s a world music album containing hip hop, R&B, reggae and Afrobeat. There are some surprising collaborations on this album, but I’m going to keep them secret! My kids also all have albums that they are going to drop in May as well. I have created a brand called Foreign Billionaires and they are going to ride that wave into the future for me. This is the second generation of Akon in the family music legacy.

AKON