He rose to prominence in 2004 following the release of the singles "Locked Up" and "Lonely", from his debut album "Trouble". His second album, "Konvicted", earned him a Grammy Award nomination for the single Smack That featuring Eminem. His latest album, "Freedom", was released in 2008. Akon often sings hooks for other artists and is currently accredited with over 200 guest appearances and 32 Billboard Hot 100 songs.
He is the first solo artist to accomplish the feat of holding both the number one and two spots simultaneously on the Billboard Hot 100 charts twice. He has also founded two record labels, Konvict Muzik and Kon Live Distribution and has a clothing label, Konvict clothing
Akon is a Muslim and has many charities of his own.
Akon's father is the Senagalese drummer Mor Thiam.
Am I Dreaming
Akon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Small, tryin' to ball, always been black
And my hair, I tried it all I even went flat
Had a lumpy curly top and all that crap, now
Just tryin' to be appreciated
Nappy headed brothers never had no ladies
And I hit the barber shop real quick
Had 'em give me lil' twist and it drove 'em crazy (crazy)
'Cause corporate wouldn't hire no dreadlocks
Then I thought about my dogs from the block
Kinda understand why they chose to steal and rob
Was it the hair that got me this far
All these girls these cribs these cars?
I hate to say it but it seem so flawed
'Cause success didn't come till I cut it all off
Little girl with the press and curl
Age eight, I got a Jheri curl
Thirteen, and I got a relaxer
I was a source of so much laughter
At fifteen when it all broke off
Eighteen and went all natural
February, 2002
I went on and did what I had to do
Because it was time to change my life
To become the woman that I am inside
Ninety-seven dreadlocks all gone
I looked in the mirror for the first time and saw that
Hey (hey)
I am not my hair
I am not this skin
I am not your expectations, no (hey)
I am not my hair
I am not this skin
I am the soul that lives within
Good hair means curls and waves (no)
Bad hair means you look like a slave (no)
At the turn of the century
It's time for us to redefine who we be
You can shave it off like a South African beauty
Or get in on lock like Bob Marley
You can rock it straight like Oprah Winfrey
If it's not what's on your head, it's what's underneath, and say
Hey (hey)
I am not my hair
I am not this skin
I am not your expectations, no (hey)
I am not my hair
I am not this skin
I am the soul that lives within
Who cares if you don't like that?
With nothin' to lose, postin' with the wave cap
And the cops wanna harass 'cause I got waves
Ain't see nothin' like that in all my days
Man, you gotta change all these feelings
Steady judging one another by their appearance
Yes, India, I feel ya, girl
Now go ahead, talk to the rest of the world 'cause
(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
Does the way I wear my hair make me a better person?
(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
Does the way I wear my hair make me a better friend? Oh
(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
Does the way I wear my hair determine my integrity?
(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
I am expressing my creativity
(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
Breast cancer and chemotherapy
Took away her crownin' glory
She promised God if she was to survive
She would enjoy every day of her life, oh
On national television
Her diamond eyes are sparkling
Bald-headed like a full moon shining
Singing out to the whole wide world like, hey
Hey (hey)
I am not my hair
I am not this skin
I am not your expectations, no (hey)
I am not my hair
I am not this skin
I am the soul that lives within
Hey (hey)
I am not my hair
I am not this skin
I am not your expectations, no (hey)
I am not my hair
I am not this skin
I am the soul that lives within
In Akon's song "Am I Dreaming," the lyrics focus on the power of hair, and how it can impact a person's identity, social standing, and opportunities in life. The song begins with Akon reflecting on his own experiences as a young black man, who felt like he had to conform to certain hair standards in order to be accepted or successful. He discusses how he experimented with different styles, including a "lumpy curly top," before ultimately deciding to shave it all off.
The second verse of the song is sung by India.Arie, who shares her own journey with hair. She describes getting a Jheri curl at age 8, and then getting a relaxer at age 13. Despite trying to conform to societal beauty standards, she was still made fun of and felt like a source of laughter. Eventually, she decided to go completely natural at age 18, and cut off her 97 dreadlocks in 2002. She sings, "I am not my hair, I am not this skin, I am the soul that lives within," reinforcing the message that appearances do not define a person's worth or identity.
The chorus of the song emphasizes this message, with Akon and India.Arie both singing, "I am not my hair, I am not this skin, I am not your expectations." They challenge the listener to think about how they judge themselves and others based on appearance, and to recognize the importance of inner beauty and individuality.
Overall, "Am I Dreaming" is a powerful and introspective song that encourages listeners to embrace their true selves and reject societal beauty standards. Through personal anecdotes and insightful lyrics, Akon and India.Arie deliver a message that is both empowering and thought-provoking.
Line by Line Meaning
See, I can kinda recall a lil' ways back
I can remember back to when I was young
Small, tryin' to ball, always been black
When I was young, I tried to be successful, but I faced challenges because I am black
And my hair, I tried it all I even went flat
I tried different hairstyles, even straightening my hair
Had a lumpy curly top and all that crap, now
I used to have a messy, curly hairstyle
Just tryin' to be appreciated
I was just trying to be accepted and valued
Nappy headed brothers never had no ladies
Men with natural, kinky hair were not seen as attractive
And I hit the barber shop real quick
I went to the barbershop to get a new hairstyle
Had 'em give me lil' twist and it drove 'em crazy (crazy)
I got twisted braids and it made me stand out
Then I couldn't get no job
I struggled to find employment
'Cause corporate wouldn't hire no dreadlocks
Companies discriminated against people with dreadlocks
Then I thought about my dogs from the block
I thought about my friends from the neighborhood
Kinda understand why they chose to steal and rob
I can see why they felt like they had to resort to stealing and robbing
Was it the hair that got me this far
I wondered if my hair was the reason for my success
All these girls these cribs these cars?
I had all these things that I thought were a result of my success
I hate to say it but it seem so flawed
But it seemed like there was something wrong with that idea
'Cause success didn't come till I cut it all off
In reality, I didn't achieve success until I cut off all my hair
Little girl with the press and curl
As a child, I had a hairstyle called a press and curl
Age eight, I got a Jheri curl
When I was eight years old, I got a Jheri curl hairstyle
Thirteen, and I got a relaxer
When I was thirteen, I got a chemical relaxer to straighten my hair
I was a source of so much laughter
People made fun of me because of my hair
At fifteen when it all broke off
When I was fifteen, my hair broke off due to damage
Eighteen and went all natural
At eighteen, I stopped using chemicals and went natural
February, 2002
In February 2002
I went on and did what I had to do
I did what I needed to do for myself
Because it was time to change my life
It was time for me to make a change in my life
To become the woman that I am inside
To become the person I truly am on the inside
Ninety-seven dreadlocks all gone
I cut off my 97 dreadlocks
I looked in the mirror for the first time and saw that
When I looked in the mirror, I saw something different about myself
Hey (hey)
Hey
I am not my hair
My hair does not define me
I am not this skin
My skin color does not define me
I am not your expectations, no (hey)
I am not who you expect me to be
I am the soul that lives within
I am what is on the inside
Good hair means curls and waves (no)
People see curly and wavy hair as good
Bad hair means you look like a slave (no)
People associate certain hairstyles with slavery and oppression
At the turn of the century
As we enter a new time period
It's time for us to redefine who we be
We need to redefine who we are
You can shave it off like a South African beauty
You can shave your hair off, like the women in South Africa who did it as a form of protest and resistance
Or get in on lock like Bob Marley
You can get your hair in locks, like Bob Marley did
You can rock it straight like Oprah Winfrey
You can wear your hair straight, like Oprah Winfrey does
If it's not what's on your head, it's what's underneath, and say
What matters is not your hairstyle, but what's inside of you
Who cares if you don't like that?
It doesn't matter if you don't agree
With nothin' to lose, postin' with the wave cap
I have nothing to lose, so why not wear a wave cap?
And the cops wanna harass 'cause I got waves
The police harass me because I am wearing a wave cap
Ain't see nothin' like that in all my days
I have never seen anything like this before
Man, you gotta change all these feelings
We need to change how we view things
Steady judging one another by their appearance
We constantly judge each other based on how we look
Yes, India, I feel ya, girl
I understand how you feel, India
Now go ahead, talk to the rest of the world 'cause
Now tell the world how you feel
(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
(Wow)
Does the way I wear my hair make me a better person?
Does my hairstyle determine my worth as a person?
(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
(Wow)
Does the way I wear my hair make me a better friend? Oh
Does my hairstyle affect my ability to be a good friend?
(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
(Wow)
Does the way I wear my hair determine my integrity?
Is my hairstyle a reflection of my moral character?
(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
(Wow)
I am expressing my creativity
I am expressing myself through my hairstyle
(Whoa, whoa, whoa)
(Wow)
Breast cancer and chemotherapy
I had breast cancer and underwent chemotherapy
Took away her crownin' glory
The chemotherapy caused her hair to fall out
She promised God if she was to survive
She made a promise to God that if she survived, she would live every day to the fullest
She would enjoy every day of her life, oh
She would appreciate and cherish every moment of her life
On national television
On live TV
Her diamond eyes are sparkling
Her eyes shine like diamonds
Bald-headed like a full moon shining
She is bald, but she shines brightly like a full moon
Singing out to the whole wide world like, hey
She is singing to the world
Hey (hey)
Hey
I am not my hair
My hair does not define me
I am not this skin
My skin color does not define me
I am not your expectations, no (hey)
I am not who you expect me to be
I am the soul that lives within
I am what is on the inside
Hey (hey)
Hey
I am not my hair
My hair does not define me
I am not this skin
My skin color does not define me
I am the soul that lives within
I am what is on the inside
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Andrew Ramsey, Shannon Sanders, India Arie Simpson, Aliaune Thiam
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Kadijatou D
2021 and this song literally just popped into my head out of nowhere I didn’t even know the name just started humming it😭
Precious Phiri
2022 we here
Maureen Munuhe
Me too! Just now
Brenda Julez
Same☺️
Frida Ikome
Me too 🤣
Monika Johannes
Same here
Oluwaseun Olorunmaye
The year is 2021 and I woke up with this beat randomly playing in my head.
Rim kay
Born 2000s you will never understand how powerful this song was and is still.2022 we still here.
Indila Metumo Ndinaomwaameni
22 April 2022, 07H08 in Namibia. Playing this song on repeat right now while on duty. Just popped up into my head last night. Gained access to internet years ago but just seeing the video now for the first time. Will always love and appreciate this song.
Nispriha Sujeewon
This song keep me dancing on the go. Beautiful song Kat DeLuna ft Akon