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Who is Akala? Meet the British rapper with a famous musician sister who has become Angelina Jolie's rock after split from Brad Pitt - after swapping music for political activism Have YOU got a story? Email [email protected] By Kirsten Murray For Mailonline Published: 03:23 EDT, 30 August 2024 | Updated: 03:23 EDT, 30 August 2024 e-mail View comments Angelina Jolie set tongues wagging after she was seem leaving a hotel in Venice on Wednesday with British rapper Akala. The duo appeared to spark romance rumours as they appeared together with In Touch claiming the Hollywood star, 49, has been 'casually' political activist, 40, for over a year.
However it has now been reported the pair are just friends and Akala, 40, has become the star's rock amid her split from Brad Pitt as they bond over their shared passions. Akala has been included on the annual Powerlist of the 100 most influential Black British people in the UK, most recently making the 2021 edition. But who is Akala? Meet the British rapper Akala with a famous musician sister who has become Angelina Jolie's rock amid split from Brad Pitt - after swapping music for political activism The duo appeared to spark romance rumours as they appeared together at Venice Festival on Wednesday, yet they are reportedly just close friends Akala, 40, - born Kingslee James McLean Daley - started out as a rapper before moving into political activism, and becoming an author.
He was originally born in West Sussex to a Scottish mother and Jamaican father who separated before he was born. Read More Angelina Jolie spotted with British rapper and activist who is helping her heal from Brad Pitt split His older sister is also the famous singer and rapper Ms. Dynamite.
Ms. Dynamite, 43 - real name Niomi Arleen McLean-Daley - enjoyed a string of hits in the early 2000s with her debut album A Little Deeper, which won the prestigious Mercury Music Prize. Growing up in Camden, Akala was put in a special needs group at his primary school for children with learning difficulties and English as a second language.
Despite this Akala went on to achieve ten GCSE's and even took Maths a year early. He previously said: 'I was in the top 1 per cent of GCSEs in the country. I got 100 per cent in my English exam.
Year Nine, my friends start cutting each other up...
' Akala admitted he first saw a friend attacked by a meat cleaver to the skull when he was just 12-years-old and went on to carry a knife himself for a period. He went on to dedicate his career to speaking up about race, class and social issues. Akala, 40, - born Kingslee James McLean Daley - started out as a rapper before moving into political activism, and becoming an author.
His older sister is also the famous singer and rapper Ms. Dynamite (pictured in 2009) Akala has dedicated his career to speaking up about race, class and social issues Akala has also been incredibly open about his political views and was a keen supporter of Jeremy Corbyn during the 2017 and 2019 general election His breakthrough album It’s Not a Rumour, released in 2006, earned him a MOBO Award for Best Hip Hop Act and he went on to release two more albums, Freedom Lasso (2007) and Double Think (2010). He has also performed across the UK at a range of festivals including Wireless, Glastonbury, Reading and Leeds and Parklife.
As well as music, Akala is also an author, publishing his book Natives: Race and Class in the Ruins of Empire in 2018, which is part biography and part a polemic on race and class. Akala has also been incredibly open about his political views and was a keen supporter of Jeremy Corbyn during the 2017 and 2019 general election. Speaking out about knife crime Akala has criticised the idea that more police and tougher sentences are enough to beat knife crime - blaming the epidemic on a lack of education and poverty.
Appearing on Channel 4 News in 2019, he said gang violence was 'not new' but had existed for 150 to 200 years, and suggested that a 'moral panic' was pushing politicians towards the wrong solutions. 'The social indicators of that violence have remained identical. Those are poverty, domestic abuse and a lack of education, particularly expulsion from school.
' He also founded The Hip-hop Shakespeare Company in 2009 which is a music theatre production company which combines the works of William Shakespeare with that of modern day hip hop artists. Akala is currently in a relationship with Chanelle Newman who is co-founder and executive producer of Akala's music and the Hip-hop Shakespeare Company. Akala and Angelina appear to have struck up a friendship over their common interests in activism and a shared passion for travel and culture Ms.
Dynamite, 43 - real name Niomi Arleen McLean-Daley - enjoyed a string of hits in the early 2000s with her debut album A Little Deeper, which won the prestigious Mercury Music Prize (pictured in 2007) Akala has reportedly been seeing Angelina for over a year after he met up with the actress and her daughters Zahara, 19, and Shiloh, 18, at the Calabash Literary Festival in Jamaica in May of last year. The pair appear to have struck up a friendship over their common interests in activism and a shared passion for travel and culture. Akala is also said to get on well with her children.
In addition to Zahara and Shiloh, Angelina and her ex-husband Brad Pitt share sons Maddox, 22, Pax, 20, and 15-year-old twins Vivienne and Knox. While the pair were rumoured to be dating, a source told People : 'She and Akala are not dating. She is friends with him and his partner, Chanelle, who was also there.
' Angelina is reportedly single and not dating seriously at the moment. The source added: 'They share the same passion when it comes to social and humanitarian causes. 'They did several collabs over the years that focus on global issues like human rights.
Angie speaks very highly of him.' Share or comment on this article: Who is Akala? Meet the British rapper with a famous musician sister who has become Angelina Jolie's rock after split from Brad Pitt - after swapping music for political activism e-mail Add comment.
