ARR's music has a global touch

He’s a‘kon’fident dude and he’s in India to perform. TOI gets hip-hoppin’ with the musician
He made the word Konvict sound cool and got millions around the world to Smack That. And now, the man is all set to take the country by storm, with a full-fledged concert. Hip-hop powerhouse Akon will perform in India and he spoke to Chennai Times about his expectations ahead of the tour.
Akon is not a novelty in India by any means. Not only because he performed at the IPL finale last time, but more because a majority of nightclubs in the country use his songs as a staple. “And what’s special about this tour is that it kickstarts on my birthday,” pipes the singer, “I fell in love with India on my very first visit. Even though I have to get back to start rehearsal for my tour with Usher coming up at the end of the month, I decided to spend my birthday weekend in India — I can’t think of a better birthday present!”
Akon is now one of the biggest hip-hop artists in the world and yet, he surprises us with his disarming honesty. In fact, he makes no bones about attributing part of his musical success to his time behind the bars from 1999-2002. “It was in prison that I discovered my flair for music and lyrics. The songs I wrote there, led me to a recording studio and the album Konvict (which was originally to be called Acquitted). The purpose of the Konvict movement was positivity — to show that you can come out of a situation like that and create a better life for yourself,” he explains. Having performed at the IPL ceremony last time, Akon confesses that he is smitten by all things Indian. “I’ve started keenly following cricket and am very happy that India won the World Cup,” he gushes.

The hitmaker, who has also lent his voice to SRK’s Ra One, is also of the opinion that Indian artists are a highly talented lot. He nods, “I have already collaborated with Aadesh Shrivastava and I find Sunidhi Chauhan and Sonu Niigaam fantastic! It, of course, goes without saying that Chennai star A R Rahman is an artist par excellence. I like his music because it has a beautiful global touch.”