22. Akon's Diamond Mine

22. Akon's Diamond Mine

One of the most common and basic themes in rap music is that artists brag about their lifestyles, wealth and possessions. They all want to make the case that they have more money, more gold and more luxury cars than anybody else. They can stop it now. The competition is over. Akon has won, and nobody's ever going to get close to him.

In 2007, the rapper parted with an unknown sum of cash (which must have been enormous) to buy his own diamond mine in South Africa. That means that the produce of the mine is his, and so are the profits that come for it. Unusually for a rapper, Akon is strangely shy about his involvement in the mine, having said in the past that it's a 'complicated situation.' We suspect the only thing complicated about it is the number of zeroes that come on his pay checks from the proceeds.

NEXT

Did You Know...

I

Chefs made their way into celebrity land a while ago. But how many celebrities that weren’t trained as professional cooks are actually whizzes in the kitchen? Here are several that come to mind.

II

Actress Julia Roberts is confident about her cooking skills. “I’m quite a good cook,” she told E! News. “I’m like a closet home ec teacher…I can really cook anything.” Roberts has said she often cooks fish for herself and her kids. And speaking of her three children, “They think that I’m a good cook,” Roberts told People. “They actually told me that I should open a restaurant.” She also relishes cooking for the holidays, particularly shredded Brussel sprouts. Roberts hasn’t published a cookbook, but we did find recipes attributed to her for peach crisp and banana hemp muffins. Or you can make the same summer salad the actress supposedly eats.

III

Chrissy Teigen started off as a supermodel. Then her love of cooking filtered into her professional life too. At this point, she’s created recipes for a limited Blue Apron release and also just launched her own home and cooking line at Target named “Cravings,” after the two cookbooks she’s released. Teigen describes cooking as “a time of peace” for herself. So maybe peace out to her tuna melt sandwich or the fried chicken wings that are a favorite of her husband, John Legend.

IV

Lady Gaga, whose real name is Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, comes from a cooking Italian family. Her father started his own restaurant in New York and also published a cookbook. And apparently, Lady Gaga has inherited the family’s cooking genes. Her Instagram account occasionally features photos of her culinary activities. Sure, sometimes it’s topless cooking. But other times it’s more poignant like in the post she shared about her bringing food to the family of her dear friend who passed away. Want to try a Gaga/Germanotta family favorite? Check out her recipe for whole wheat pasta with a sweet fennel sauce.

NEXT


Copyright © 2025 CultureHook