Inside Angelina Jolie’s romance with rapper Akala – brother of UK hip hop star who dodged life of crime for success

DRESSED successful a chic outfit, with her agleam reddish lips successful a glowing smile, Angelina Jolie looks happier and much assured than she has successful years.

After her precise messy divorce from Brad Pitt, thing is yet putting a grin connected the 49-year-old actress’s face.

And it whitethorn person a batch to bash with Akala, a rapper, writer and activistic from Kentish Town, North London, who is the member of award-winning rapper Ms Dynamite — and rumoured to beryllium the caller antheral successful Angelina’s life.

The Oscar-winning star, who is presently promoting her caller film Maria, successful which she plays opera vocalist Maria Callas, has told however navigating the 2016 break-up from Brad made her consciousness “smaller, astir insignificant” and “hurt”.

But Angelina, precocious unveiled arsenic the caller look of Tom Ford Beauty, was beaming connected the red carpet astatine the film’s Los Angeles premiere astatine the play arsenic she debuted her stunning caller curly hairdo.

It has been reported she has been secretly seeing Akala for astatine slightest a year, and past period adjacent sneaked him into her London hotel, wherever they spent 2 nights, earlier attending the British Film Institute premiere of her caller movie.

Organised criminals

On paper, 40-year-old Akala — existent sanction Kingslee McLean Daley — mightiness look similar an antithetic pairing for A-lister Angelina.

He had humble beginnings, increasing up successful a assembly house, surrounded by pack members, immoderate of whom were from his ain family.

But done his enactment for societal justness causes, including the 2017 Grenfell Tower tragedy, helium has recovered himself successful Angelina’s orbit.

Both she and Akala — who has appeared successful the yearly Powerlist of the 100 astir influential achromatic British radical — are good known for their philanthropy.

They archetypal sparked romance rumours past year, erstwhile helium joined Angelina and her daughters Zahara, 19, and Shiloh, 18, astatine the Calabash Literary Festival successful Jamaica.

Then successful August this twelvemonth they were seen emerging from her edifice during the Venice International Film Festival, wherever Angelina’s caller movie received an eight-minute lasting ovation.

The duo person been spotted astatine assorted events, including the New York Film Festival premiere of Maria successful September, wherever Akala spent clip with Angelina’s lad Pax, 20.

A root has said: “They stock the aforesaid passionateness erstwhile it comes to societal and humanitarian causes.

“They did respective collabs implicit the years that absorption connected planetary issues similar human rights.

“Angie speaks precise highly of him.”

Akala’s Scottish parent and Jamaican begetter separated earlier helium was born, and helium has described his upbringing arsenic “the clichéd, single-parent working-class family”.

When helium was conscionable 12 helium saw a person attacked with a cleaver, prompting Akala to transportation a weapon himself for a time.

Recalling the incidental connected his 2010 medium DoubleThink, helium said: “First clip I saw knives penetrate flesh, it was nutrient cleavers to the backmost of the head.”

And successful 2019 helium said: “When you acquisition unit increasing up, it changes thing wrong you.

“There was a play of my beingness wherever unit was the logical effect to confrontation.

“As hard arsenic I’ve tried, arsenic overmuch arsenic I meditate, bash yoga and bash martial arts, I don’t consciousness that’s ever near me.”

But his mum encouraged him to enactment hard, and helium reached the apical of his class, taking a maths exam a twelvemonth aboriginal and aboriginal getting 10 GCSEs.

And helium says his “gangster uncles” who were “organised criminals”, often successful and retired of prison, would reward him aft schoolhouse for his knowledge, including giving him a fiver for saying hard words specified arsenic “Australopithecus”, an aboriginal ancestor of humans.

In 2021 Akala said: “They thought it was hilarious that a small kid could pronounce that word.

“They thought maine being clever was cool, and that was really, truly valuable.”

However, helium has besides been candid astir the challenges helium faced increasing up arsenic a mixed-race child.

In 2018 helium recalled: “I was 1 of the smartest kids successful the people but I was enactment successful a peculiar needs radical due to the fact that of a teacher who thought I was excessively agleam for a working-class brownish boy.

“Fortunately, my mum was already sending maine to Pan-African Society connected Saturdays, truthful I’d learned to beryllium prepared for this benignant of discrimination.

“I had this armoury that could prime up connected it and nip it successful the bud and support maine successful school.”

And successful a 2021 interrogation helium said: “I’m not saying it’s intolerable for you to beryllium palmy if you’re calved into a mediocre inheritance successful Britain.

“I’m saying the gargantuan effort it requires, and the hurdles you person to leap over, conscionable marque it incredibly unlikely.”

Despite scoring successful the apical 1 per cent of GCSE results, Akala dropped retired of assemblage and didn’t spell to university.

But successful 2018 helium received an honorary doctorate from Brighton University and told graduates there: “I can’t lie, I often envy those of you who bash get to go, radical similar you who are astir to remake the world, oregon astatine slightest this country.

"That’s however superior these 4 years are.

Speaking up astir race

“What volition you bash with the clip you spent present and the acquisition you person been privileged to beryllium loaned by the remainder of society?”

Not that Akala has missed retired connected achieving.

His archetypal album, It’s Not A Rumour, was released successful 2006 and won him a Mobo grant for Best Hip Hop Artist.

Two much albums followed, including collaborating with Ms Dynamite, whose deed songs see It Takes More and Dy-Na-Mi-Tee.

In 2009 helium founded The Hip-hop Shakespeare Company, a euphony theatre accumulation institution which combines the works of William Shakespeare with modern-day hip-hop artists, with the enactment of acting large Sir Ian McKellen.

Akala has since dedicated his vocation to speaking up astir race, people and societal issues.

In 2018 helium published his best-selling publication Natives: Race And Class In The Ruins Of Empire, which elaborate his experiences arsenic good arsenic exploring factors that person shaped contention and people successful Britain.

He criticised officials aft it emerged determination was nary main occurrence alarm oregon sprinklers successful Grenfell Tower erstwhile it caught occurrence successful June 2017, sidesplitting 72 people.

He said: “The radical who died and mislaid their homes — this happened . . . due to the fact that they are poor.

“We are successful 1 of the richest spaces, not conscionable successful London but successful the world.

“Repeated requests were ignored.

“There is nary mode that affluent radical would beryllium surviving successful a gathering without capable occurrence safety.

“Everybody I spoke to couldn’t perceive alarms, determination was nary sprinkler system.”

It seems Akala could beryllium conscionable what Angelina needs aft a hard fewer years pursuing her acrimonious divided from Brad, 60.

The erstwhile Hollywood aureate couple, besides parents to Maddox, 23, and twins Vivienne and Knox, 16, got unneurotic successful 2004 aft gathering connected the acceptable of spy thriller Mr & Mrs Smith and joined successful 2014.

She filed for divorcement successful 2016, accusing him of physically abusing her, including an alleged drunken onslaught connected her and the children connected a level aft a vacation successful France.

Brad vehemently denied the claims astatine the time, and aft an investigation nary charges were made.

Angelina has been azygous since they split, portion Brad has been dating jewellery decorator Ines de Ramon since 2022, though divorcement proceedings are inactive ongoing.

Last twelvemonth Angelina told Vogue mag that for 7 years she had lone taken acting roles that didn’t necessitate agelong shoots, for her children’s sake.

She said: “I conjecture I’m successful modulation arsenic a person. I consciousness a spot down these days. I don’t consciousness similar I’ve been myself for a decade, successful a way, which I don’t privation to get into.”

She went on: “We had a batch of healing to do. We’re inactive uncovering our footing.”

She added that she wanted to “rediscover herself”, and continued: “I’m hoping to alteration galore aspects of my life.”

And with a rumoured caller antheral and her film, she appears to beryllium doing conscionable that.