Following the tragic death of Michael K. Williams, Akon used the actor’s suspected drug overdose to make his point that rich people have a harder time of it than the poor.
In a statement provided to TMZ, he opined that the public is not privy to the private internal struggle and hardship faced by celebrities. “There’s just too many of us going down like that, and I think when moments like this happen we all gotta reflect, ’cause we’re all going through things in our lives, things that—making decisions that actually affect not only us and our life, but everyone that surrounds and looks up to us,” he said then.
TMZ returned to pester the “Lonely” singer once more, tracking him down outside LAX Airport this weekend. And when asked if he wanted to walk back the highly inflammatory statement, no retraction was forthcoming.
Instead Akon doubled down, insisting that his remarks came from experience and his own rags to riches story. “He says he knows what he said pissed off some people, but adds he’s not backing down from his stance, because, personally…he was actually happier before he had money,” TMZ noted.
Akon did offer a slight apology, for those “that felt that comment affected or emotionally put them in a position that made it seem like I was arrogant.” He then explained that he hadn’t calculated that there are more people in the world than successful people and not everyone has experienced what he has experienced.
While continuing to discuss the perils of being rich, Akon told the reporter, “It’s not the money, it’s the mindset. The money creates and breeds so much jealousy, envy, and brings about a lot of evil.”
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Some of his comments might be rather unwise but the star has still been a strong philanthropist in Africa.
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Check out Akon’s latest comments on the rich vs. poor:
