NE-YO and Akon

NE-YO is a three-time Grammy Award-winning R&B hitmaker, iconic songwriter, actor, entrepreneur, and philanthropist whose illustrious catalog has generated a combined total of 23 billion streams worldwide. His debut single, 2005’s “So Sick,” hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was certified quadruple-platinum. Since then, the Motown Records/Compound Entertainment recording artist has racked up a collection of global hits including “Sexy Love,” “Closer,” “Because of You,” “Miss Independent,” and “Push Back” (feat. Bebe Rexha and Stefflon Don).” Additionally, NE-YO has proven to be as powerful with his pen as he is in the recording studio and on stage, penning bangers like Rihanna’s “Unfaithful,” “Russian Roulette,” and “Take a Bow,” along with Beyoncé’s 2006 breakup anthem “Irreplaceable” and songs for artists such as Jennifer Hudson, Usher, Carrie Underwood, Celine Dion, Mario and more. The multihyphenate has also leveraged his platform as a musician to pivot into acting. His film and television credits include NBC’s World of Dance, Netflix’s Dance Monsters, Empire, Stomp the Yard, Save the Last Dance, Battle: Los Angeles, George Lucas' Red Tails, The Wiz Live!, Starz’s Step Up: High Water, Hip Hop Family Christmas Wedding and The Sound of Christmas. He will be starring in the upcoming season of 50 Cent’s acclaimed drama series BMF on STARZ.

Akon is an award-winning recording artist, singer and producer from St. Louis, Missouri. Born Aliaune Damala Bouga Time Puru Nacka Lu Lu Lu Badara Akon Thiam, the Senegalese-American star broke out with his 2004 debut album Trouble, which featured popular singles like “Locked Up,” “Lonely” and “Belly Dancer (Bananza).” In the mid-2000s, Akon mixed his brand of hip-hop and R&B with his West African influences to help craft the defining sound of the era on the radio, racking up hits like “Smack That” (featuring Eminem), back-to-back No. 1 singles “I Wanna Love You” (featuring Snoop Dogg) and “Don’t Matter,” along with Top 10 hits “Sorry, Blame It on Me” and “Right Now (Na Na Na)” across studio sets Konvicted (2006) and Freedom (2008). Later projects in Akon’s discography include the albums El Negreeto (2019) and Akonda (2019) as well as the EPs Ain’t No Peace (2020), TT Freak (2023) and Afro Freak (2023). Behind the boards, Akon has produced and collaborated with artists like Snoop Dogg, Gwen Stefani, Michael Jackson, T-Pain, Nicole Scherzinger, Wyclef Jean and more.