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Posts Tagged ‘Akon’

With his unique blend of West African musical influences, Southern beats and East Coast inflections along with a dazzling presence that attracts those who watch music videos by the singer, Akon has gone from an unknown alleged convict to a music star in just a few short years.

Born to Mor Thiam, a jazz percussionist, and his wife, in St. Louis, Akon was raised in Senegal until the age of seven. At that point, his father returned to the US and brought the family with him. Until he was 15, Akon spent time in both countries.

Despite Akon?s insistence that he has a criminal past where he was involved in drug dealing, car theft and spent several years in prison (where he apparently discovered his musical talents), there is no evidence to support his claims. In fact, it would appear that Akon has a squeaky clean past, according to criminal and court records. However, the artist sticks to his story that he spent time in prison after moving to New Jersey with his family.

In 2004, his solo album debut, Trouble, was released. It prompted several singles, including the hit “Ghetto” which was released by his own record company, Konvict Music. A year later, he turned out the song “Lonely”, which took him to the top five songs on the Billboard Hot 100 list, as well as maxing out the charts in several countries, including the UK and Germany. The young singer was becoming a star.

In 2005, the first of several music videos was nominated for an award, “Locked Up”, which drew people to download music videos by the relatively new music artist. That same year, his manager was shot and killed in New Jersey during an altercation.

Akon began to collaborate on albums and music videos of popular rappers and singers, including Gwen Stefani, Snoop Dog, Eminem and Young Jeezy. He also released his second album, Konvicted, in 2006, and it debuted at the number two spot on the Billboard Hot 100, getting off to a great start.

Interesting Akon Trivia
His real name is Aliaune Damala Bouga Time Puru Nacka Lu Lu Lu Badara Akon Thiam, though this is usually shortened to Aliaune Badara Thiam or Aliaune Damala Thiam.

Akon is Muslim and because of this, he has never tasted alcohol or tried a cigarette. He is also rumored to have 3 wives, which is allowed by his religion, but the only thing we know for sure is that he admits to having children with three different women.

The singer is surrounded by mystery and he likes it that way. Even his birth date is unverified and in interviews, Akon has refused to clarify, preferring that no one know his true age. The most widely accepted year of birth is 1873, but he has also been said to have been born in 1981.

Akon is the owner of a diamond mine in Africa. Ask him about the infamous “blood diamonds” and he?ll respond that there is no such thing and it was only a movie.

He also runs the Konfidence Foundation, an organization to help underpriveledged children in Africa.
The singer was the first solo artist ever to hold the first AND second spots on the Billboard Hot 100 list and he accomplished this feat not once, but twice.

Akon has made music videos with both Eminem and Gwen Stefani.

His music videos have been nominated 4 times for the MTV Video Music Awards, two of which were solos.

The young singer has taken his unique origins and natural born talent and turned them into something people are clamoring for. His music is already a huge success and his collaborations are taking Akon even higher.

Author Bio: View the largest collection of Akon videos online. Watch music videos of your favorite artists as well as view pictures, songs, artist bio and more!

Category: Entertainment
Keywords: Akon videos,watch music videos,music videos online,music videos

The Apple I-pod is one of the most technologically advanced multi media players on the market. The new I-pod touch and I-pod video have the capabilities to store and play thousands of songs and pictures like the older models, but now have the technology to store and play hundreds of hours of video as well.

Apple has taken instant, hand held entertainment to a new level, allowing I-pod users to create their own videos and upload them onto their I-pods to enjoy and share, or to purchase their favorite music videos from I-tunes (or one of any number of other online retailers) to carry with them anywhere they go.

Where to get your Favorite Videos

There are a number of ways to get your favorite music videos and movie clips onto your I-pod where you’ll be able to enjoy them wherever and whenever you want.

The Safest Bets

You can join a website for the specific purpose of supplying videos for portable media players. This is often a good option, because the files will already be in the format that will be compatible with your I-pod software, so all you have to do is essentially point and click to have all of your favorite music videos in the palm of your hand. The only downside to joining a membership site, is that you have to pay the fee regardless of how many videos you download – so if you only find a few that you really want, then you could be paying an exceedingly high per-video fee. The up side is that downloading videos this way is perfectly safe and legal; you can search and download all the videos you want without any fear of viruses or legal repercussions.

You can transfer videos from DVDs that you already own, which will be free, but a little bit more complicated. I-pods only support video in the MPEG 4 format, which means that any videos in any other format will have to be translated into the MPEG 4 format in order to be compatible with your I-pod. Translating video into this format will require you to purchase software that can change the video format, creating an extra cost and adding an extra step to the process. You may or may not be able to find a software application that can translate certain video formats for you for free, but be very wary about what sites you download programs from – in looking for a cheaper alternative, you may just find yourself with an unwanted virus.

You can also join a “pay as you download” site, where you won’t have any out of pocket cost to join, but will pay for each individual video that you download. This is just as safe and legal as the pay membership sites, but you will probably end up paying a bit more for each individual video that you download. These sites often have very extensive libraries containing thousands and thousands of videos to choose from, so finding the exact videos that you want shouldn’t be very challenging.

A Cheaper but, Risky Option

If you don’t want to pay for the software to translate videos into the MPEG4 format, or pay anything for the videos that you download, you can always visit a free download or shareware site. You’ll usually be able to find exactly what you are looking for on these sites, but the big downsides here are that it is dangerous and illegal. These sites usually aren’t monitored very well, so it’s pretty common to find that either a virus or some form of spy-ware has found it’s way onto your computer, particular if your are on the sites often.

Whatever method of downloading videos to your I-pod that you happen to choose, you’ll be opening yourself up to a whole new style of entertainment. You’ll have instant access to all of your favorite music videos, no matter when or where you want to view them. Apple has totally changed the way we are able to entertain ourselves with the capabilities of the new series of I-pods.

Author Bio: View the largest collection of music videos online featuring all of the most popular artist and bands including Akon, Lil Wayne, Eminem and more!

Akon is set to release his forthcoming album, Freedom, December 2 via Konvict/Upfront/SRC/Universal Records and the rapper told Billboard that while there are some typical Konvict tracks on the record he is going in a new direction as an artist. The 34-year-old artist said he changed the sound because, “Everyone adapted to the Konvict sound already, so we had to switch it up. Now we’re bringing the whole Euro-club sound. That’s where we’re headed with it.” Sure enough, the album’s single “Right Now (Na Na Na)” shows the synth sound that Akon is going with for his upcoming album. The video for “Right Now (Na Na Na)” is directed by Gill Green and made its debut online and on BET last week. More evidence of Akon’s sound transformation lie in other dance singles like “Keep You Much Longer,” “Troublemaker,” “Beautiful” and “Holla Holla” which features T-Pain. The best way to see Akon’s new sound is to see him live.

Akon was raised in Senegal but moved to the States when he was just seven-years-old. Unfortunately the rapper, who has since cleaned up his act, discovered hip-hop music and crime around the same time and only thought to pursue music seriously when he was behind bars. When he was released Akon, the son of jazz percussionist Mor Thiam, released the aptly-titled LP Trouble in 2004 and its lead single “Locked Up” was an instant sensation. The ex-con turned fledgling rap star released his sophomore album, Konvicted, in 2006. Konvicted spawned the Number One hit singles “I Wanna Love You” and “Smack That” and solidified Akon’s spot among the top tier of rappers in the nation. While Trouble managed to sell 1.6 million copies in the U.S., according to Nielsen Soundscan, Konvicted eclipsed the success of Akon’s debut by selling 2.9 million.

Akon’s third album is sure to do just as well as his last two, as the second single for Freedom, “I’m So Paid,” features Lil Wayne and Young Jeezy and is one track, like “Sunny Day” and “Be With You,” that is meant for the rapper’s broad urban fan base. Although Akon is known for singing about his love of “smacking that” and not falling in love with a stripper, the rapper does lay down some compassionate rhymes on “Over the Edge” and “Birthmark” from his upcoming album.

While finalizing his new album is undoubtedly keeping him busy, Akon is planning on hitting the road for a 10-to-12 city promotional tour one week before Freedom hits stands and will embark on an official tour in support of the album in February. Be sure to get your Akon tickets quick because the buzz about Akon’s new album is only getting louder which means shows are sure to sell out. The rapper is offering an unspecified prize for fans who submit videos about what freedom means for them on his website and also working with a watchmaker out of Switzerland to design two exclusive watched for a wrist watch/phone combo. Akon’s Konvict clothing line will be available in February (just in time for his tour) and a more upscale line called Aliaune will follow next fall.

This article is sponsored by http://www.stubhub.com/ and was written by Kirby Brooks.StubHub.com is a leader in the business of selling http://www.stubhub.com/akon-tickets/, sports tickets, concert tickets, theater tickets and special events tickets.