Career Timeline of Akon: Major Achievements and Milestones
How Akon built a successful career. Explore key moments that defined the journey.
Akon, born Aliaune Thiam, is a Senegalese-American singer, songwriter, rapper, record producer, businessman, and philanthropist. He gained significant recognition in 2004 with his hit single "Locked Up," a hip-hop-infused track. This success led to his debut album, Trouble (2004), marking his commercial breakthrough. The following year, he released the R&B-inspired "Lonely," further solidifying his presence in the music industry and his influential status in world music.
6 hours ago : Akon faces divorce settlement drama while releasing new remix with Gary LeVox.
Akon is facing a challenging divorce as his wife seeks a €100 million settlement, while he claims to only have $10K. Simultaneously, he released 'Hold the Umbrella (Party Mix)' with Gary LeVox.
1996: Record Deal Falls Through
In 1996, Akon recorded a single, "Operations of Nature", that earned him a deal with Elektra Records. However, when the song failed to gain traction in the United States, the record deal was terminated.
June 29, 2004: Release of Trouble Album
On June 29, 2004, Akon's solo debut album, Trouble, was released. It featured the singles "Locked Up", "Lonely", "Belly Dancer (Bananza)", "Pot of Gold" and "Ghetto".
2004: Founding of Konvict Muzik
In 2004, Akon founded the record label Konvict Muzik.
2004: Rise to Prominence and Debut Album Trouble
In 2004, Akon rose to prominence following the release of his single "Locked Up" featuring Styles P, which was styled in hip-hop. This preceded the release of his debut studio album Trouble in 2004, a commercial breakthrough, and the release of the R&B-styled follow-up single "Lonely" in 2005.
April 2005: "Lonely" Reaches Number One in the UK
In April 2005, Akon's album climbed to number one in the UK.
August 2006: Release of Smack That
In August 2006, Akon released the first single "Smack That" (featuring Eminem) from his album Konvicted. The song peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 for five consecutive weeks.
October 5, 2006: Record-Breaking Climb on Hot 100
On October 5, 2006, Akon's "Smack That" achieved the largest climb in the Hot 100 chart's 48-year history, jumping from number 95 to 7, fueled by its number six debut on Hot Digital Songs with 67,000 downloads.
November 2006: Release of Konvicted Album
In November 2006, Akon's second album, Konvicted, was released and debuted at number two on the Billboard 200, selling 286,000 copies in its first week.
2006: Plans for Collaborative Album with Young Jeezy
In 2006, Akon and Young Jeezy discussed plans for a collaborative album.
2006: Konvicted Album Success
In 2006, Akon's second album, Konvicted, achieved continued success, earning a nomination for Best Contemporary R&B Album at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards. The lead singles "I Wanna Love You" featuring Snoop Dogg and "Smack That" featuring Eminem, received nominations for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, simultaneously peaking at numbers one and two on the Billboard Hot 100.
January 2007: Release of Don't Matter
In January 2007, Akon released "Don't Matter", which became his first solo number one and second consecutive Hot 100 chart-topper.
February 2007: Launch of Konvict Clothing Line
In February 2007, Akon launched his clothing line Konvict Clothing, featuring urban streetwear like denim jeans, hoodies, T-shirts, and hats. The line also included an upscale version called Aliaune with blazers and other items.
July 2007: Release of Mama Africa
In July 2007, Akon released "Mama Africa" as a European single, marking the fourth overall single from the album Konvicted.
August 2007: Debut of Sorry, Blame It on Me
In August 2007, "Sorry, Blame It on Me" debuted on the Hot 100 at number seven to coincide with the release of the deluxe edition of the album Konvicted.
2007: Founding of KonLive Distribution
In 2007, Akon founded KonLive Distribution, through which he signed commercially successful acts including Lady Gaga, T-Pain, R. City, Kardinal Offishall, Jeffree Star and French Montana, among others.
July 2008: Leak of Hold My Hand
In July 2008, "Hold My Hand", an R&B duet between Michael Jackson and Akon, circulated on the internet.
November 17, 2008: Appearance on WWE Raw
On November 17, 2008, Akon appeared on WWE Raw, with Santino Marella citing him in his speech.
December 2, 2008: Release of Freedom Album
On December 2, 2008, Akon released his third album Freedom, which included the singles "Right Now (Na Na Na)", "I'm So Paid" (featuring Lil Wayne and Young Jeezy), "Beautiful" (featuring Colby O'Donis and Kardinal Offishall) and "We Don't Care". Freedom was certified platinum in the US.
2008: Collaboration with New Kids on the Block and Leona Lewis
In 2008, Akon co-wrote and recorded "Put It on My Tab" with New Kids on the Block for their reunion album The Block. Also, in 2008, he co-wrote and produced Leona Lewis' single "Forgive Me".
March 25, 2009: IsThereSomethingICanDo.com launch
On March 25, 2009, Akon partnered with Peter Buffett and DoSomething.org to launch IsThereSomethingICanDo.com, a social action collaboration, coinciding with the release of their song "Blood Into Gold" about human trafficking.
2009: Suggested Rap Supergroup and Flipsyde Production
In 2009, Nelly suggested that Akon, Pharrell, and T-Pain had talked about forming a rap supergroup. In the same year Akon and Konvict Muzik produced Flipsyde's album, State of Survival.
September 2010: Release of "Angel", Collaboration with Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg, and Charity Single
In September 2010, Akon released the single "Angel", which reached number 56 on the US Billboard charts. He also collaborated with Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg on "Kush" around the same time, which charted at number 36 on the Billboard charts. Additionally, Akon contributed to "We Are the World: 25 for Haiti", a charity single in aid of the 2010 Haiti earthquake.
November 2010: Release of Hold My Hand
In November 2010, Akon finished work on "Hold My Hand" for Michael Jackson's posthumous album, Michael, and it was released as a single.
2010: Premios Lo Nuestro Nominations
In 2010, Akon's collaboration with Aventura and Wisin & Yandel on "All Up 2 You" received two nominations at the Premios Lo Nuestro for "Urban Song of the Year" and "Video Collaboration of the Year".
2010: Collaboration with David Guetta on "Sexy Bitch" and Production of "Oh Africa"
In 2010, David Guetta collaborated with Akon on "Sexy Bitch", which became Akon's first house track, reaching number 1 in several countries and charting at number 5 on the Billboard Hot 100. Also in 2010, Akon produced and recorded "Oh Africa" with Pepsi for the 2010 World Cup.
2011: Collaboration on "Chammak Challo" for Ra.One
In 2011, Akon collaborated with Vishal–Shekhar on the English and Hindi lyrics of "Chammak Challo" for the Bollywood film Ra.One soundtrack.
2012: Acting Debut in Black November
In 2012, Akon made his acting debut in the Nigerian-American film Black November.
February 2013: Release of "Dirty Work" featuring Wiz Khalifa
In February 2013, after an almost three-year hiatus from solo work, Akon released the promotional single "Dirty Work", featuring Wiz Khalifa, which peaked at number 31 on the Rhythmic Billboard charts.
November 11, 2013: Release of "So Blue"
On November 11, 2013, Akon released a standalone single titled "So Blue".
2014: Launch of Akon Lighting Africa
In 2014, Akon launched the non-profit Akon Lighting Africa.
2014: Starring Role in American Heist
In 2014, Akon starred alongside Hayden Christensen and Adrien Brody in the action movie American Heist.
January 1, 2015: Release of Five Singles from Stadium
On January 1, 2015, Akon released five singles from Stadium. He also announced that the album would be a quintuple album, broken up into five genres (Euro, Pop, Urban, Island & World). All singles failed to chart.
November 2015: Announcement of Stadium Album Release Plans
In November 2015, Akon announced his plans to release his fourth album Stadium in four versions: Stadium-Island, Stadium-Urban, Stadium-World, and Stadium-House, exclusively via the Stadium mobile app.
2015: Release of Singles and Record Deal with Atlantic Records
In late 2015, Akon released the singles "Want Some", "Hypnotized" and "Good Girls Lie" after signing a new record deal with Atlantic Records.
April 2016: Appearance on I Am a Singer
In April 2016, Akon appeared on the Chinese reality TV show I Am a Singer along with Taiwanese singer Jeff Chang.
2017: Release of Konvict Kartel Vol. 2
In late 2017, Akon released a collaborative mixtape with Konvict signees entitled Konvict Kartel Vol. 2.
2018: Announcement of Akon City Project
In 2018, Akon announced he was working with the Senegalese government to build Akon City, a tourist city with a cryptocurrency-based economy using Akoin.
2018: Collaboration with Ozuna and Adoption of "El Negreeto" Nickname
In 2018, Akon collaborated with reggaeton singer Ozuna on the bilingual single "Coméntale", his first Spanish-language song. He also adopted the nickname "El Negreeto" and planned collaborations with other Spanish-language artists.
September 6, 2019: Release of "Cómo No" featuring Becky G
On September 6, 2019, Akon released "Cómo No" featuring Mexican-American singer Becky G, as the lead single from El Negreeto.
October 4, 2019: Release of El Negreeto
On October 4, 2019, Akon released the album El Negreeto.
October 25, 2019: Release of Akonda
On October 25, 2019, Akon released the album Akonda.
2019: Exploration of Reggaeton, Latin Music, and Afrobeats
In 2019, Akon released two albums. El Negreeto explored reggaeton and Latin music, and Akonda explored Afrobeats. However, both albums failed to chart.
June 2020: Award of Akon City Construction Contract
In June 2020, KE International was awarded a $6 billion contract to build Akon City.
August 2023: Release of "Locked Up" Remix
In August 2023, a remix of "Locked Up" (originally by Akon) by Steve Aoki, Trinix, and Akon was released.
2025: Collaboration with Josh Ross on "Drunk Right Now (Na Na Na)"
In 2025, Akon joined Canadian country music artist Josh Ross on the song "Drunk Right Now (Na Na Na)", a reimagined take on Akon's song "Right Now (Na Na Na)".
2028: Scheduled Completion of Akon City
Akon has begun development on his own city in Senegal, which is scheduled for completion in 2028.
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