Tems Artist Profile

Full Name: Temilade Openiyi
Born: June 11, 1995, Lagos, Nigeria
Education: Dowen College, Lekki; Economics, Monash South Africa
Labels: Since '93, RCA Records, Leading Vibes
Genres: Afrobeats, R&B, Alté

Bullied for Her Voice, Then Built a Career on It

Before there was a Grammy nomination or a Billboard number one, Tems was a teenager getting mocked for the sound of her own voice. She has spoken openly about being bullied in school and outside it over the pitch of her voice, receiving unsolicited comments from strangers that left her believing for a time that she sounded like a boy or that her voice was simply ugly. She joined her school choir at 11, began singing in falsetto, and was eventually recognised by a music instructor who trained her properly and taught her piano. She practised constantly with her older brother, who accompanied her on guitar.

Quitting Digital Marketing for YouTube Production Tutorials

Tems studied Economics at Monash South Africa in Johannesburg before working a standard digital marketing job — a corporate role she left in 2018 to pursue music full time. With no formal production training, she taught herself music production by watching YouTube tutorials, and on July 18, 2018, released her debut single, Mr Rebel, entirely self-produced. Try Me followed on August 7, 2019, and became a significant hit that solidified her place in Nigeria's alté scene. DJ Edu named her one of his "ten artists to watch" for 2020.

Essence and the Global Turn

Her feature on Wizkid's Essence, already covered on this blog, changed the scale of everything. The remix featuring Justin Bieber peaked at number 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earned Tems her first Grammy nomination. The same year she appeared on Drake's Fountains from Certified Lover Boy. Her debut EP, For Broken Ears, released September 25, 2020, and her second, If Orange Was a Place, followed in 2021 after she signed with RCA Records.

In 2022, Future sampled her own song Higher on his single Wait for U, alongside Drake — the track debuted at number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, making Tems the first African and second Nigerian artist to reach that position. She continued building a catalogue defined by atmosphere and restraint rather than maximalist production, releasing her debut studio album Born In The Wild in 2024.

🔗 Also Read

Tems – What You Need (Love Is A Kingdom EP)

Where She Stands Now

By late 2025, Tems had two Grammy wins, a writing credit on a Rihanna track, a feature on Beyoncé's Renaissance, and a halftime performance at the FIFA Club World Cup Final alongside J Balvin and Doja Cat. Her surprise EP, Love Is A Kingdom, released November 21, 2025 and already covered on this blog through its tracks What You Need and Is There A Reason, was recorded in the same London studio that produced Born In The Wild — a deliberate return to intimacy after a year defined by some of the biggest stages in global pop. Throughout all of it, the thread connecting Mr Rebel to a Beyoncé feature has stayed the same: a voice once mocked for sounding wrong has become one of the most distinctive and trusted in the genre.

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