Grammy-winning Nigerian singer, Temilade Openiyi, popularly known as Tems, has disclosed that global music icons Beyoncé, Rihanna, and Drake reached out to her within just three days in 2020.
In a recent interview with BigBoyTV, the 29-year-old sensation shared insights into her rise to fame, describing how her life transformed after the release of her collaborative hit ‘Essence’ with Afrobeats star Wizkid.
According to Tems, Beyoncé’s team was the first to reach out, quickly followed by direct messages from Drake and Rihanna.
She said, “When I met Wizkid, I had only three songs. We recorded ‘Essence’ in 2019, it came out in 2020 and I released my EP during the pandemic.
“I didn’t imagine that I would become this big thing. We did ‘Essence’ and things started going off. I started getting messages. Beyoncé reached out in 2020 and my mind was blown. I was like God, what’s going on?
“Because I lived alone throughout the whole time I was in school and when I had a job, I was alone and I was really to my thoughts a lot.
“Beyoncé’s team reached out and I got DMs from people that I looked up to. Other artistes like Drake and Rihanna. These are people that influenced culture very much so for the past 10 years or more. These are people that are very respectable in the industry.
“I was in Nigeria when I got their messages. I was in my house alone when I got everything. In fact | got their messages within three days of each other.
“It felt like something crazy was happening, like it wasn’t real and I was dreaming. I felt like I was being pranked.”
Tems’ journey to stardom began when she collaborated with Wizkid on the song ‘Essence’ in 2019, though the track wasn’t released until 2020. That same year, she debuted her extended play (EP), ‘For Broken Ears’, which captivated a global audience amid the pandemic.
The multi-talented singer’s influence only grew as she garnered accolades, including her first Grammy in 2022 for her work on Future’s chart-topping hit, ‘Wait for U,’ which featured Drake.
Additionally, Tems co-wrote ‘Lift Me Up’, which Rihanna performed on the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack, further solidifying her place among music’s elite.
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