Amoussou was born in Draguignan, France. His martial arts background is in judo, his older brother Bertrand being a medal-winning judoka for France in the 1990 European Judo Championships as well as the first and only French fighter to win a fight in Pride FC, while Amoussou's Senegalese father was also a successful karate stylist. Before becoming a full-time fighter, Amoussou worked full-time as an undercover agent in his native France, mostly tracking down drug dealers and thieves.