Makkah: Senegalese-American songwriter, rapper Akon was recently in Saudi Arabia for his concert. After his event, he went on to perform Umrah, a religious pilgrimage for Muslims.
On Tuesday, pictures and videos of him surfaced on the internet where he was seen standing in front of the Ka’abah alongside family and friends.
Before the concert, he talked about being excited about coming to Saudi Arabia and was especially excited to go to one city in particular. “…First thing tomorrow morning, I’m headed to Makkah to perform Umrah,” he said.
Akon is usually private about his religious beliefs, he previously disclosed in an interview how he feels about Islam. “The reason behind my success is faith in Almighty Allah and by following Islam,” he said.
Contrary to popular belief it is not a recent change in religion that has motivated him to perform Umrah. The 46-year-old singer was born into a Muslim family and has been a Muslim since birth. He has also never shied away from showing his religious side by crediting his success to his faith.
Akon is the first solo artist to hold both the number one and two spots simultaneously on the Billboard Hot 100 charts twice. Akon has had four songs certified as 3× platinum, three songs certified as 2× platinum, more than ten songs certified as 1× platinum and more than ten songs certified as gold in digital sales.