Music Artist & Philanthropist Akon Develops His Own Cryptocurrency Akoin & Crypto-based City Akon City
While at the Reinvent Yourself With Crypto Conference, many individuals were exposed to the world of Crypto. One of the panelist at the conference was Artist, Producer & Songwriter, Akon. Although Akon is an music artist, he has been doing work within the African community and making other investments.
In 2018, Akon partnered up with the Senegalese government to build Akon City, a 100 percent crypto-based city that uses Akon’s cyptrocurrency, Akoin. During our discussion, we had a chance to learn more about Akoin & Akon City.
AbuFromTheDaily: First I have to give you your flowers for everything for Africa. For many years you have been the voice and the face of Africa. I’m really interested in learning about how you got into cryptocurrency and the creation of your own city in Senegal. What even inspired you to start your own cryptocurrency Akoin?
Akon: It’s actually a real long and quick story at the same time. I remember when I first went to Senegal and I had changed my U.S. dollars for the local money. I was spending my money normally, but when I was leaving, I was in a rush to get on a flight. I just had all this money but I didn’t worry about it because when I get to France, I can just change it over and I’ll be good. So I get there and go through the money exchange and I pull out the money to exchange it.
So as I’m exchanging it, they looked at it like, I’m sorry, we don’t accept CFR. I said, what? But you’re French. They said, yes. I said, but you guys made this money for us. She said, yes. I said, so you mean to me, this money means nothing here in France. And y’all made this money for us. He said, yes, I’m sorry. I said, wow. That’s when I realized they don’t respect us. And for them to give us money, that’s not even worth nothing in their own country. We needed our own currency. And that was the day that I said, you know what? I got to start my own currency.
AbuFromTheDaily: I understand it 100%. So now I want to shift the topic because you are the modern-day Marcus Garvey. I say because you are building Akon City and you want to bring African-Americans back to Africa. That is the same vision Marcus Garvey had so how did the idea from Akon Cory came about and what can we move there?
Akon: Well, the idea came because I really wanted to create a more comfortable living environment for African people. But I also know that in order for me to get Americans back, you have to also feel like they’re going to be comfortable. They have certain things that they like for you stay there. They wasn’t raised in the village and they wasn’t raised under circumstances that natural Africans in rural areas raised under. If you’re going to change and relocate, it has to be just, it has to be just as good as where you’re leaving or better. So I know that’s going to be the biggest step.
The biggest step is to provide a location or destination where they can be like, man, I got to go out there for vacation, but I know the moment they come for vacation, they don’t want to go back home.
AbuFromTheDaily: So in the near future, about the like next 10-20 years, could we see some more, Akon Cities across Africa?
Akon: So right now we have five that we’re building throughout Africa, starting with Senegal as the prototype of all the other cities that we’ll be building shortly after.
AbuFromTheDaily: Okay. So, you know I’m from Sierra Leone and we could definitely use a Akon City over there.
Akon: We still have a little bit of work left to do in there, but it’s definitely on a target to building a agricultural city. The soil in Sierra Leone is one of the riches of all. You already know what the resources that you guys on the ground over there. So we’re looking to do some really specialists here in the office and we are all here for it.
