He had a wish list with all the collaborations he would love to do and Michael was at the top of this list. He was saying ‘Well, if ever I get to Mike, then that’ll be the sign I can retire.” Since he teamed Michael Jackson so early he decided not to make retirement goals from now on. The new single will have a special video and Jackson will probably appear in it. The other single that he recorded with Michael Jackson, Wanna Be Startin Something is already available on alltel ringtones and it would be lovely to hear the new single as soon as possible. Until then, i found an exclusive instrumental of Hold my Hand.

“I’m flattered that they’ve expressed the interest publicly, risking their careers in doing so,” Contactmusic quoted him as telling Rolling Stone magazine.”Anything is possible and I certainly would investigate doing that if I did think about doing something,” he added. This is not the first time that R&B stars have evinced interest in Collins’ music, for Brandy, L’il Kim and Kelis sang updated versions of Collin’s hits on 2001’s Urban Renewal LP

By Nigel Nassar

AKON, though Americanised, is every inch an African man, and has gone an extra mile to tell the world that he has not forgotten his African roots. The Senegalese-American R&B/Hip-Hop sensation, who arrived in Uganda on Thursday night ahead of his concert yesterday, told the Ugandan press that he has “only” four wives.

“I have read stories on the internet saying I am involved with many girls. But I have only four girlfriends, whom I also refer to as my wives,” Akon, aka Aliuane Thiam Badara, said to the enchantment of the journalists and fans during a conference at Celtel house, six hours before his concert.

“I am an African man. And for we, African men, polygamy is what we do. It’s our thing,” he said in a matter-of-fact tone.

He promised to come back to Uganda for charity.

“I can’t tell the time frame, but I promise I will,” he said, after handing over primary school textbooks to Joseph Okanya, the deputy head teacher of Nakivubo Blue Primary School, whose pupils sang for the artiste.

He said allegations that he did not want to come to Uganda were aimed at pulling him from the top.

“Don’t be part of that. If you destroy me, you are destroying a million African artistes out there who are trying to make it.” He said the reason he recently failed to turn up for a concert in Nairobi was because of the violence that broke out after the elections could not guarantee his safety.

Meanwhile, his arrival in the country dispelled people’s speculation of a looming hoax. Upon arrival in Kampala, Akon was treated to a greet-and-meet party at Sway Club, where he, with Nigerian R&B duo P-Square, met fans before retiring to the Kampala Serena Hotel, where they spent the night before their Friday concert.

Akon, also a songwriter, occasional rapper and record producer, rose to fame in 2004 following the release of his single Locked Up.

His second album, Konvicted, earned him a Grammy Award nomination for the single Smack That. He is the only artist to ever accomplish the feat of holding both the number one and two spots simultaneously on the Billboard Hot 100 charts twice.

THE crowd was mammoth and ecstatic. Everyone, young and old, VIP and ordinary, got on their feet, singing and dancing along. Akon did not disappoint. His live concert on Friday night was worth every penny revellers paid for it.

The venue, Lugogo Cricket Oval, was full to the brim. It had filled up by 6:00pm, about two hours before the beginning of the show.

Recorded music entertained the crowd until the first curtain raiser, Uganda’s Chameleone, got onto the stage. He was followed by Bebe Cool.

Then came a close substitute. Nigerian US-based duo P-Square got onto the stage and sang the remaining chill out of the audience. They taught the crowd the Do Me dance - and it was quick to learn.

Finally, at about 10:45pm, Akon stepped onto the stage to claim his show, sending revellers into a frenzy.

They screamed and jumped high in the air with their hands reaching out, trying to touch him.

Clad in a black cardigan with its hood covering his head, a pair of blue denim jeans and black dancing shoes, he let out a loud holler: “Uganda, are you ready?”

The “yes” response was deafening.

Then he uncovered his head, revealing a wavy hairdo and diamond-studded earlobes.

“What a hunk!” a lady in the VIP section yelled.

Then the Senegalese-American R&B/Hip-hop sensation set the ball rolling, singing out his heart and thrilling Kampala with more than 15 of his hits, including Mama Africa and Locked Up.

By the time the show ended, one and a half hours later, he had stripped to a bare chest and thrown the four T-shirts he had been wearing into the crowd.

The Urban Music Festival at the Dome in Northgate, Johannesburg, failed to live up to expectations. Featuring Senegalese-American singer Akon and rapper Fat Joe, the show, held on Friday night, failed to attract music lovers despite thousands of rands that were pumped into the concert.

Those who could not see the show should not worry about missing the concert because they missed nothing. Firstly, the venue was empty and the sound was bad, to say the least. Even Brian Mcnight’s show was able to fill the hall to capacity.

The festival started on time with local acts doing curtain-raisers for the international acts. Female singer Lungi was first but she failed dismally on stage.

After her Jozi and Leane performed but still could not shake the crowd. Singer Danny K tried to give the show some life but his voice was swallowed by the sound.

Music lovers began enjoying the concert when American duo Black Violins came on stage. Then music lovers finally saw Fat Joe on stage, giving a rather lukewarm performance. The man who really saved the day was the multi-award winning Akon. He gave a sizzling performance.

A couple of years later, in 2006, his new album Konvicted was released. Eminem features in the song Smack That and this is one of the most played songs in the album. Snoop Dog features in the song I Wanna Love You and just as the title suggest this is a love song. Mama Africa is another warm song which features in the album and anyone who has been associated with Africa in anyway will surely love this song. Akon’s Konvicted made its debut at number 2 in Billboard 200. The album sold more then 280,000 copies in the first week itself. The album continued to be at the top of the Billboard 200 for more then 25 weeks.

Akon will also start his acting career and he will play in a movie based on some of the events in his life. If you want to watch more videos with Akon and a lot more artists you should go to: http://www.videoszoom.com/

A movie version of Akon’s life story entitled Illegal Alien is also rumoured to be in the works, with ER star Mekhi Phifer the favourite to play the lead.

Akon, real name Alioune Badara Thiam, rose to fame in 2004 with hit single ‘Locked Up’ from his debut album Trouble. He was born in Senegal and made a permanent move to the US at the age of 15. The 35-year-old was caught up in controversy last month after fans started a riot in a shopping centre.

Tbo Touch, 26, whose real name is Thabo Molefe, was trying to bring R&B sensation Joe Thomas to South Africa to collaborate with local artists.

He claimed he was conned by a US “agent” who took more than R400000 from him to facilitate the trip . But, after paying the money, Tbo Touch heard nothing from the agent again.

Tbo Touch then contacted Akon — known for hits such as Smack That and Don’t Matter — who contacted Thomas’s managers and arranged the upcoming trip. Tbo Touch said he has since instructed a US attorney to recover the money.

An upside to the drama surrounding Thomas’s trip down south is that Akon will be coming to South Africa too, said Tbo Touch.

The paperwork has been signed and Akon will travel here with Thomas in May.

Akon is set to perform, while Thomas will do a studio recording with an artist yet to be named.

Tbo Touch and Akon are partners in a South African business venture called Konvict Muzik SA, which facilitates collaborations between international and local musicians.

Last year, Akon walked off with the American Music Award for favourite soul/R&B male artist. He also received three World Music Awards, including one for the world’s bestselling R&B artist.

The son of Senegalese percussionist Mor Thiam, Akon has collaborated with, among others, Wyclef Jean on his recently released album, Memoirs of an Immigrant.