% See URL & videos below for gushing-writer's celebrity-crushing %
https://cleantechnica.com/2016/01/27/akon-tesla-fanboi-exclusive-video/ Akon = Tesla Fanboi (Exclusive Video) January 27th, 2016 Zachary Shahan [videos https://youtu.be/1S5vgEde3DU Akon's A Tesla Fanboi Zachary Shahan Jan 26, 2016 Akon talks with CleanTechnica ... about his Tesla Model S & Tesla Model X, why no other cars compare, and why any offering from Porsche or BMW has to be fully electric (BMW i8 doesn't cut it) to get Akon's attention. https://youtu.be/Hq-1hjDxxLs Akon's Solar Inspiration & Tesla & Electric Car Love Zachary Shahan Jan 24, 2016 CleanTechnica ... interviews ... Akon regarding Akon Lighting Africa, solar power, music, Tesla, and electric cars. images http://cleantechnica.com/files/2016/01/Akon-Solar-Lighting-Tesla-Interview.png Akon Solar Lighting Tesla Interview http://cleantechnica.com/files/2016/01/Akon-Zach-e1453832216101.jpg Akon Zach ] Yesterday, I shared a video interview with international superstar Akon [ http://cleantechnica.com/2016/01/26/akons-solar-inspiration-akon-lighting-africa-roots-tesla-love/ ] that I conducted with him regarding Akon Lighting Africa [ http://akonlightingafrica.com/ ], a company he and a couple of other guys launched to bring solar power and LED lighting to millions of Africans. Tagged on at the end of that was a joking question about whether or not he had a Tesla Model X or Model S yet. I figured there was a chance he had a Model S, but if not, I thought I’d plant the seed and hope that he followed through and became a Tesla driver and EV evangelist. I was pretty surprised to find out his story on this front, and I thought it was something worth highlighting on its own since many people tune in for Tesla stories who don’t care much about solar and probably skimmed over the solar-focused headline yesterday. Like many famous musicians and actors, Akon went on a car-buying spree after becoming rich. He had 28 cars, including Lamborghinis, Ferraris, BMWs, and so on. However, he found the Teslas to be so much better than anything else, that he got rid of all of his other cars and now just has 4 Teslas — 2 at his home in Georgia and 2 at his home in California. The Tesla love isn’t brand new, either. Akon has apparently been a big fan of Tesla long enough to be one of the first people to put a $40,000 deposit (or two?) down for the Tesla Model X (~4 years ago). I didn’t ask him what Model X VIN(s) he had, but he was apparently one of the first few hundred people to receive an X ... Akon told me that his Teslas were all customized (natch) but “P85D” didn’t seem to register, so I wasn’t sure how aware he was of other plug-in cars on the market. I started to tell him about ... plug-in hybrids, he beat me to the punch and went on a tangent about how they’ve got to be fully electric and how great Tesla’s over-the-air software updates, extra space, and torque are ... The enthusiasm in his speech and the light in his eyes really made me want to highlight this aspect of his green focus ... I love that Akon also threw in that BMW should let him test a fully electric high-performance car if they make one, and that he wants Elon Musk to provide him with a special Akon Tesla ... While Akon didn’t highlight the green benefits of electric cars when talking to me, I’m under the impression these matter a lot to him. In a separate interview a Masdar guy conducted with him [ http://cleantechnica.com/2016/01/27/akon-word-of-wisdom-importance-of-solar-call-to-climate-action-video-interview/ ] soon after mine, Akon talked at length about the need for climate action. Here’s an extended quote from that: “Our passion is always going to be the key to our freedom, but ultimately freedom doesn’t exist if we’re in a position that we’re not (inaudible) within ourselves. This energy crisis is way beyond just… a thought. Like, this is not only our futures, but it’s our kids’ futures and it’s the world’s future, because, even when you look at the climate change and how things are drastically changing, if we don’t come together now, as we’re doing, because it’s going to be this generation that makes the difference — clearly — it’s gonna be a huge problem for us tomorrow. There is no future for the earth. Nature is not gonna wait. Nature’s gonna go on with or without us. The same way dinosaurs went extinct, guess what, nature kept moving. That’s just the natural course of life, so we have to want better for our environment, because our environment at the end of the day is what allows us to live free and enjoy life the way it is. So we all have to play a role, and we all have to unite. Forget whatever issues, whatever differences — at the end of the day, as humans, as the human race, we all have to live under the same globe, so we have to come together and make the right decisions.” ... Akon is definitely a climate hawk ... And here’s my full (recorded) interview with Akon [ http://cleantechnica.com/2016/01/26/akons-solar-inspiration-akon-lighting-africa-roots-tesla-love/ ] ... [© cleantechnica.com] ... http://ecowatch.com/2016/01/27/akon-lighting-africa/ This Tesla-Loving Superstar Is Helping Power Africa With Solar January 27, 2016 ... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akon Aliaume Damala Badara Akon Thiam is an American singer, rapper, songwriter, businessman, and record producer ... For EVLN EV-newswire posts use: http://evdl.org/evln/ {brucedp.150m.com} -- View this message in context: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/EVLN-EVangelist-Akon-a-4x-Tesla-fan-solar-LEDs-green-more-focused-tp4680162.html Sent from the Electric Vehicle Discussion List mailing list archive at Nabble.com. _______________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org Read EVAngel's EV News at http://evdl.org/evln/ Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
