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Akon's big break came from a stint in jail; without it, he says, he wouldn't have gone on to become one of the biggest hit-makers in hip-hop/pop today. Reminders of his time spent in the hoosegow appear throughout his... Read More

Akon's big break came from a stint in jail; without it, he says, he wouldn't have gone on to become one of the biggest hit-makers in hip-hop/pop today.

Reminders of his time spent in the hoosegow appear throughout his compositions. His productions open with the sound of slamming bars, and he calls his stable "Konvict Muzik." Akon's 2004 debut single was titled -- what else? -- "Locked Up," and throughout the lyrics he revisits his time behind bars when he dreamt of building a better life outside: "Can't wait to get out and move forward with my life/Got a family that loves me and wants to do me right," he sings through his smooth but lived-in Senagalese accent before being slapped by reality -- "But instead I'm here locked up."

Akon tends not to get bogged down in lyrical metaphors when discussing sex: "I Wanna F*** You" and "Smack That" are as straightforward as you can get this side of the Ying Yang Twins. But that same rambunctious side caught up with him in 2007 when he was videotaped freak-dancing on-stage with a 15-year-old in Trinidad, and he responded in song with "Sorry, Blame It On Me:" "I'm sorry for the hand that she was dealt/For the embarrassment that she felt/Just a little young girl trying to have fun/Her daddy should have never let her out that young."

His lyrics may shift the blame, but Akon's no snitch. He knows better -- a life lesson he probably picked up in the joint.