“It was in prison that I discovered my musical talents and my flair for jotting down lyrics. Even though I was not given a long sentence, the period of my life between 1999 and 2002 was literally spent in prison. Alone in my cell, I would write songs, and when I was finally released for the last time in 2002, the songs led me to a recording studio. And the rest, I guess, is history,” says R&B star Akon in an email interview. On his second tour of India, he will perform at the HUDA grounds in Gurgaon on Saturday.
Born in St Louis in the US and raised in Senegal and the US, Aliaune Damala Akon Thiam aka Akon, has three popular albums to his name — Trouble, Konvicted and Freedom, all of which went platinum. He has also collaborated with some of the most famous musicians of our times, including Lady Gaga, T-Pain and the late Michael Jackson, with whom he had developed a close friendship during the latter’s final years. “People love and accept me for my music,” he says. A practising Muslim, he believes that music transcends all boundaries. “I have not faced many incidents of hate due to my religious beliefs. My fans include people from all religions, castes, creeds and nationalities and I love all of them,” he says.
The singer confesses to one great weakness — for the colour white. “Ever since I was a child, I have been attracted to white, and most of my clothes are of that colour,” he says. “Even my clothing line, Konvict Clothing, has mostly white apparel,” he adds.
The R&B artiste is also a great one for pranks. “Two of my brothers look exactly like me. People have always mistaken them for me. When I was not in Atlanta (where he is currently based), they would go out, posing as me and would be subjected to all sorts of VIP treatment!” he reveals. The prank was “getting slightly out of hand,” as Akon describes it, so he decided to turn it into a television reality show, My Brother’s Keeper, which will premiere in the US soon. “The idea is the same — they will pretend to be me and we’ll see how many people will fall for it,” he says, mischievously. “I’m constantly working and on the move, so I can’t live that kind of a life, but they are welcome to it. The show is along the lines of Ashton Kutcher’s show Punk’d.”
Special effects, too, are a part of Akon’s shows. His performance in India, for instance, with be spiked up with a series of airbursts, quick shot jets and bangs. Also expect pyrotechnics like gas flames in red, yellow and green colours and a ‘waterfall of fire’, which will flow down from the ceiling across the stage, during the percussion solo medley. For the final track, Sexy Bitch, confetti cannons with multi-coloured confetti, will be fired from the edge of the stage towards the crowd to create a rainbow effect.
Akon already has an Indian superstar fan, Shah Rukh Khan, for whose upcoming movie, Ra.One, he has recorded two songs. So, will he consider a move towards
Bollywood? “If I get a good opportunity, I will surely consider doing more work in Bollywood,” he says.
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