Music Reviews
Artist:
AkonTitle:
Akon at Hammersmith ApolloLabel:
Universal
Who ever thought you’d hear Amy Winehouse at an Akon concert? Then again, who could’ve predicted that the rapper turned singer would have thrown a booing fan off of a stage and into the crowd? Akon’s recent performance at the KFest concert gave the gossip hungry tabloids something else to talk about and after hearing much detailed rumours of his bizarre stage antics, you can’t help but accredit the man, he is full of surprises when it comes to stage performances.
It’s difficult to explain the crowd’s reaction when the Senegalese singer entered onto the stage (wild comes to mind). Greeting the crowd with nothing but immense energy, he flooded the mic with talks of his experiences behind bars and how he managed to build himself up to the well established artist he is today. After what seemed like an hour long story telling, Akon treated guests to an energetic number (‘Belly Dancer’) which was closely followed by other hits including ‘I Wanna Love You’ and his smash hit ‘Ghetto’ in accapella. His performance of his début single ‘Locked Up’ was R&B at its finest and after wetting his guitarist, DJ and drummer with a bottle of Evian; he launched himself into the crowd only to have his crotch grabbed by adoring female fans. “Hey! I told you, stop grabbing my dick,” Akon shouted at screaming fans whilst he was trying to perform.
There’s no point in denying, when it comes to pleasing crowds, Akon knows his shit. After threatening to leave the stage because, as he put it, the crowd was too quiet for him, fans had to boo to divert the singer away from his dressing room. Being the joker he is, he came back and gave heavy performances of his hits ‘Don’t matter,’ ‘A.K’ and ‘Ghetto Story.’ The concert proved to be a haven for those who had high intentions of being drunk on not alcohol, no, but on high doses of unadulterated R&B. Akon provided that and more. Not only was this performance a reminder that he is out in the scene repping his fellow Africans, but a chance for him to prove to his UK fans that he is devoted to them as he is to those back home in the States. He gave a speech of thanks to end the show which was greeted by healthy applause.
Images by Guy Levy
