Aliaune Thiam

Early life

As the son of famed jazz musician Mor Thiam, Akon was raised in a musical setting and taught to play several instruments. At the age of 7, he moved to New Jersey. During Akon's alleged time in jail, he began to understand his music abilities and developed an appreciation for his musical background. When he was released he immediately began recording his music and sending out demo tapes. Akon's unique blend of West African-style vocals and hip-hop lyricism eventually caught the ears of executives at Universal Records.

Name and age

Akon's given name is Aliaune Thiam.Relic, Peter. "The Hook Man", Rolling Stone magazine, 2006-11-02. Some sources have written his name as Aliaune Badara Thiam or Alioune Badara Thiam. However, About.com claims that this middle name has never been independently verified.Nero, Mark Edward. Akon Profile, About.com. In addition, some media institutions have incorrectly reported that he was born in 1981. Sources such as the AP have indicated he was born in 1973. Legal documents released by The Smoking Gun list his name as Aliaune Dalama Thiam and date of birth as 1973-04-30 or 1973-04-16. According to the Smoking Gun article, "By all indications, he was born April 16, 1973". When asked his age during an interview with VIBE, Akon reportedly responded, "The only thing I hide is my age... before I lie to you, I'd rather say nothing."

Background

He is the son of the Senegalese percussionist Mor Thiam. He then spent split time between Senegal and America until he was 15, and then permanently moved to Jersey City, New Jersey.Bottomley, C. "Akon: Trouble No More", VH1.com, 2005-05-02. He recorded his first song, "Operations of Nature," at the age of fifteen.fact: date=August 2008 Akon began writing and recording tracks in his home studio. The tapes found their way to SRC/Universal, which released Akon's debut LP Trouble in June 2004. The album is a hybrid of Akon's silky, West African-styled vocals mixed with East Coast and Southern beats. Most of Akon's songs begin with the sound of the clank of a jail cell with him uttering the word "Convict."

2004–2005

Akon's solo debut album, Trouble was released on June 29, 2004. It spawned the hit singles "Locked Up" and "Lonely," as well as "Belly Dancer (Bananza)," "Pot Of Gold," and "Ghetto". Akon allegedly served a three-year jail sentence for grand theft auto, an experience that supposedly inspired his "Locked Up". "Locked Up" reached the top 10 in the U.S. and the top five in the UK. His manager Robert Montanez was shot to death following a dispute in New Jersey in December 2005. "Ghetto" became a radio hit when it was remixed by Green Lantern to include verses from legendary rappers 2Pac and The Notorious B.I.G. In 2005, he released the single "Lonely" (which samples Bobby Vinton's "Mr. Lonely"). The song reached the top five on the Billboard Hot 100, and topped the charts in Australia, the UK and Germany. His album also climbed to number one in the UK in April, 2005. When music channel The Box had a top ten weekly chart, which was calculated by the amount of video requests, Akon's "Lonely" became the longest running single on the top of the chart, spanning over fifteen weeks. Akon then released another single featuring with a New Zealand rapper, Savage with the single Moonshine, which had become a success in both New Zealand and Australia, becoming number one in the New Zealand charts. In 2005, Akon gained more popularity after being featured on Young Jeezy's debut album, Let's Get It: Thug Motivation 101, on the song "Soul Survivor."