Akon says he’s taken a step back from publicly pushing Akon City because he feels the ambitious project became a magnet for misinformation.
Speaking on Kid L’s podcast, the singer revisited his Wakanda-inspired city concept, first unveiled in 2018, and explained why he’s been quieter about it in recent years.
“I stopped promoting it because I realized that the more I promoted it, the more popular it got—and it started to become a target,” he said around the 27-minute, 40-second mark of the episode.
“Africa is one of those kinds of places that the system had a design to keep it down because of all of the resources, and how they could leverage it,” he added. “Projects like this, all it has to do is spark confidence in the people.”
According to Akon, he could see the direction things were heading and chose to shift his strategy.
“I kind of already saw where it was going, so I said, ‘OK, let me just back off the marketing approach and just allow it to be done,’” he explained. “I realized that the more they knew what I was doing, the more the sabotage started to come. I started to see a lot of fake news and bots online.”
He also pointed to headlines claiming the city was “not happening” or that the land was being taken back, saying the narratives were growing louder and more intense. Rather than constantly battling the claims, Akon said he decided to “allow it to sizzle itself off.”
Since it was first announced, Akon’s $6 billion Akon City hasn’t been without controversy. The initial phase was expected to wrap up by the end of 2023, but delays and public disputes stalled progress.
The year before that deadline, one of Akon’s former business partners filed a lawsuit, claiming he was owed millions under a settlement agreement. In court, the ex-partner alleged that both Akon City and Akoin — the cryptocurrency intended to power the city’s economy — showed “many of the trademark characteristics … of fraudulent business ventures such as Ponzi schemes and pyramid schemes.”
In 2022, Akon pushed back on concerns, attributing construction setbacks to COVID-19 and insisting the project was “100,000% moving.” He also shared that a 10-year development plan was in place to bring the city to life.
Beyond construction delays, the project has reportedly faced land rights complications and the termination of a contract involving Senegal President Macky Sall and the Society for the Development and Promotion of Coasts and Tourist Zones. The group had reportedly loaned $2 million toward the venture, with terms stating that if the project wasn’t completed by 2023, the agreement would be void.
