Akon ranks African most powerful celebrity, Davido is for Nigeria

shakirudeen taiwo

January 28, 2018 10:17 AM

The population of followers on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter were used as the measure of influence.

The Senegalese pop singer, Akon is atop the list of most followed and powerful Africans on social media. For Nigeria, Davido wears the crown and ranked 7th in the continent.

According to the African Social Media Power Report: Top 50 Footballers and Entertainers, Akon has a combined 57.75 million followers on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

Mohammed Salah – an Egyptian footballer and Liverpool striker, has 16.99 million followers to occupy the second position on the list. Didier Drogba (15.99 million), Trevor Noah (14.85 million) and Gad el Maleh (13.87 million) completed the top five list in that order.

The Power 50 is an annual rating of all footballers’ and entertainers’ based on social media fan base. The population of followers of African celebrities on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter are used to measure their influence.

David ‘Davido’ Adeleke is Nigeria’s most celebrity on social media with 12.26 million fans base on social media. This puts him in 7th position on the continental list. Peter Okoye has 10.39 million follower to have a slot as the 10th most powerful celebrity on social media in Africa.

“In a world where social media continues to play a big role, the influence of African entertainers and footballers, the crème of popular culture on our continent, continues to fascinate and that is why we have compiled this list,” said Lolade Adewuyi, chief strategist at CampsBay Media.

Other Nigerian celebrities on the list are Wizkid, Basket Mouth, AY Makun, Don Jazzy and Genevieve Nnaji.

The Top 50 African Social Media Power list for 2018 has 13 actors/actresses, 14 singers, 9 rappers, 8 footballers, 4 comedians and 2 music producers/DJs.

shakirudeen taiwo