There's an urban music megastar on his way to P.G. right na na na na now. He's a rapper, a writer, a singer, a producer.
He is Akon.
Five times, this superstar has been nominated for a Grammy Award. More than 35 songs he's worked on have ended up on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. In fact, he was the first artist to simultaneously hold the No. 1 and
No. 2 positions on that chart on two different occasions. He broke a record for Billboard as well, when his single Smack That went from No. 95 all the way to No. 7, the biggest jump the chart had ever seen.
That song also had a video featuring Hollywood leading man Eric Roberts, in a mini narrative suggestive of Akon's personal leap up life's charts, from one-time convict to international power player.
Ten of his songs have hit the platinum sales level, three more went double platinum and four more went at least three-times platinum.
All that precious metal made him a force in pop culture, but his musical abilities are what caught the attention of his peers. The consummate collaborator, he has lent his talents to about 300 recordings by other people, and some of them have names like Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Snoop Dogg and Eminem.
He has played a mentorship role in the lives of up-and-coming artists who went to stardom, like rapper Young Jeezy, the solo breakout of Gwen Stefani, and a then-unknown pop singer going by the name Lady Gaga.
One of Akon's most notable personal traits is a world view like few others in his position. He has recorded songs in other languages, he has collaborated with New Zealand rapper Savage and Canada's Kardinal Offishall, and he has gone to extraordinary lengths to establish his ancestral roots in Africa. He has founded charities there called Konfidence Foundation and Akon Lighting Africa, plus other initiatives.
Akon owns clothing designs, record companies, a number of business interests, and after a long hiatus from the music industry as a solo artist, he is back with a new album called Stadium. He brings the show to downtown Prince George on Sept. 20. He will drop the beat at the Civic Centre.
Tickets to see Akon and his special guests go on sale Friday via Ticketmaster (CN Centre box office, Studio 2880 and online).
