by T.J Martins
The new generation of Afrobeats popstars have been pivotal in pushing African music to the forefront of global and critical acclaim. Indeed the major stakeholders and posterboys—Burna Boy and Wizkid—have been around for more than a decade, but it has been a collective effort from their generation and the present one in breaching the new heights that Afrobeats has reached in recent years.
Rema has the first African song with over a billion streams, Fireboy DML became the first African artist to perform on the mainstage of the BET Awards in a year that Peru was the 2nd biggest song in the UK and Asake is shutting down 20K and 19K Arenas in the UK and US respectively, barely 18 months after breaking out in the mainstream.
It’s a lot of innumerable accomplishments and in a generation of crossover hits, championed by cross cultural collaborations—perhaps, it’s Tems that’s been the most entrenched in the global mainstream without a cross-cultural effort (on her own part at least) as she’s being getting major co-signs from US superstars, having a solo song become an organic Hot 100 hit record, collaborating creatively with Rihanna and even getting invited to the Oscars. Despite a very sparse discography of a handful singles and 2 EP’s, Tems has amassed streams that compete with the giants of the continent. And so the question beckons, how did she get here?
Tems mainstream breakout moment happened in 2020, with her debut EP For Broken Ears, that spawned the successful, Damages. It wasn’t the smash-hit success like the pandemic hit, Bad Influence by Omah Lay—but it was resonant enough to announce the arrival of a potential superstar with a unique sonic profile of R&B fusion. Prior to that, Tems had experienced a moment in the underground scene with the sleeper hit, Try Me and had amassed something of a devout sect of listeners dubbed the ‘Rebel gang’ which in turn made her the leader.
Her very artsy aesthetics and affiliations with divergent music acts earned her meaningful recognition in the alté scene, even though her branding and music wasn’t avant-garde or abstract enough for her to be labelled an alté artist. Most notably, her affiliation with Show Dem Camp and being mentored and co-managed by one half of the legendary rap duo that earned her a reputation amongst music heads and enthusiasts alike. But of course, the global movement didn’t start until Essence.
Wizkid’s Made In Lagos was arguably the most anticipated African album in the year of its release. It was the superstar’s first album in 3 years, since the divisive yet moderately succesful Sounds From The Other Side and Burna Boy had gone on to release 2 critically acclaimed and commercially successful albums in African Giant and Twice as Tall. Two albums that were at the forefront of Afrobeats push for a global audience. There was some reasoning that Wizkid was getting left behind, but the monstrous success of MIL ensured he remained at the pinnacle of relevance.
After Wizkid himself, Tems was the biggest benefactor of MIL’s success and deservedly so. Alongside Damian Marley and Tay Iwar, she delivered one of the most memorable guest performances on the album and the result was Essence, an Afro-R&B song that dangerously teetered on the leanings of pop, as a result of its ingenious production. Sony and RCA also had a masterclass in pushing the record and with the boost of a Justin Bieber feature, it wasn’t long before the song would go on to debut on the Hot 100, becoming the first African song to do so.
Wizkid was already familiar somewhat in the US mainstream when this success materialized as a result of previous major co-signs from Drake and Beyoncé, so he wasn’t the breakout star of the song. It was Tems. The world got introduced to her rich, sultry voice, tight flow cadences and emotional-charged writing. That coupled with her stunning looks and intentional branding, the success bled out of the song and she got established as an entity outside it, thanks to an ensuing Drake co sign on another album in which she also had one of the standout performances.
The Tems awareness was at an all-time high after her appearance on Drake’s Certified Lover Boy and her team didn’t fail to capitalize on the momentum with the timely release of her sophomore EP, If Orange Was A Place. It re-introduced her style to newer and fresh audiences and did enough to get them invested in her discography to the point of an old record of hers, Free Mind experiencing a resurgence and taking the US mainstream by storm.
And so when the first trailer of Marvel’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever was soundtracked by a Tems remake of the Bob Marley’s classic, No Woman No Cry, it confirmed the all too familiar theory that Tems had become the most monumental African musical export in contemporary times, especially considering the short time frame and the relatively little amount of music she put out. The definition of an organic miracle.
Now she’s gearing up for the release of her debut album, after an interview with Kendrick Lamar, one of the most critically acclaimed and greatest rappers of all time and we honestly can’t wait to see what’s next in store for her and what phase of her career she’s entering next. Whatever it is, it’s going to be monumental for sure.