Planning a future vacation with your cryptocurrency profits? You can now add Akon’s very own Akon City onto your list of possible destinations.
The singer (born Aliaune Thiam) took to Instagram to share that he’s now the official owner of a new city in his home country of Senegal. As part of a deal with the African country’s state-owned tourism company, Akon City aims to become a fully sustainable tourist village (via Vice). In the post’s caption, he wrote, “Just finalized the agreement for AKON CITY in Senegal. Looking forward to hosting you there in the future.”
Additionally, the freshly minted city will operate mainly on Akoin, Akon’s own cryptocurrency. The digital tender is intended to help bolster economies in Africa, specifically in countries where the local currency has been affected by steep inflation or government corruption.
(Read: The 25 Weirdest Pieces of Band Merchandise)
Akon City has been in the making for a while. The hip-hop artist first announced his plans in 2018 when Senegal’s President Macky Sall gave him 2,000 acres of land located by the country’s new international airport (via CNN). Then during an interview with Nick Cannon on Power 106 Los Angeles last year, the singer explained that development was already underway and would carry out over the next 10 years, with a second phase set for 2025.
Speaking with Cannon, Akon also expressed his frustrations with fellow celebrities not stepping up to help those less fortunate. “If you can have a billion dollars sitting in the bank, while you have all these people suffering and struggling, it’s crazy to me,” he said. “It’s like a waste of a billion dollars.”
The new city is just one of Akon’s philanthropic, sustainable efforts. He also heads up the Akon Lighting Africa Initiative, which helps bring off-the-grid energy to those on the continent without access to electricity. There’s also the Akon Lighting America Initiative, which focuses on building renewable energy efforts in the US and investing those profits in Africa.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B7QyDl7gXzH/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
