Tems

Temilade Openiyi (born 11 June, 1995), known professionally as Tems, is a Nigerian singer, songwriter, and record producer. She rose to prominence after she was featured on Wizkid's 2020 single Essence, which reached the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100 after the release of a remixed version with an additional feature from Justin Bieber, and earned her a Grammy Award nomination. That same year, she was featured on Drake's song, "Fountains".

Quotes

 * It is about showing people they can be who they are truly, without the masks and pretenses. You are a human being, and you can find yourself.
 * Expressing her EP release (11 February)


 * Frank Ocean played a huge part; the first song that I’d heard by him was “Swim Good.” I used to also listen to Lil Wayne and Aaliyah. Lauryn Hill’s “I Gotta Find Peace of Mind” was very, very spiritual. I could feel the energy on it. Songs like those made me want to release. The songs that all of these artists sing are releases and the expression of their spirits.
 * Songs that resonated her spiritual level


 * I got exposed to a couple of studios, and I met a few producers and started seeing the process of music being made. It made me question, “What is this?” I’d been only exploring piano and guitar at the time, and now you’re telling me I can do more than I’m already doing?
 * Her relationship with production


 * I love, love, love guitars and chords. I like things that are based on the instruments I originally learned—violin, flutes. I like things that sound raw and pure. When it comes to drums, I like them very percussion-heavy and in my own way. I enjoy hard kicks and tight snares.
 * Talking about what defines her sonically (February 2021)


 * I used to write poems a lot – I’ll just sit down and write things I’m feeling, and it’ll come out so poetic, even if I’m just talking about breakfast.
 * Talking about what she does to get off her mind about her parents' divorce (27 September)


 * That sense of being an outcast continued into high school. “I just wasn’t popular; I cried a lot, I was very shy. I would cover my head with a blazer. I wouldn’t be able to talk – I just was a loner. And my only escape was the music room.
 * How she was able to escape loneliness during her high school days


 * I was very naive. I didn’t know that people lie, I didn’t know that people didn’t write their own songs. Music has always been my expression of how I felt. It’s always been my life.
 * During an interview with THE FACE (24 May)


 * Music is my happy place. Music is the only thing that makes me feel truly at home. If I'm sad, it's the only thing I can run to. If someone says to me "here's a billion dollars, just chill" I would still do music. I mean, I'd collect the billion dollars and then do music. That's how bad it is. That's how much I love it.
 * Her happy place


 * It was just very easy, it wasn't something I had to try for. So I understood music to be my thing and no matter what it was going to take, I had to end up in it.
 * The point in time she decided to pursue music


 * Freestyling, for me, feels like a release. A lot of things I feel, I can't explain, I just sing it. So it was one of those days when it was just inside me. I don't know where it came from. By the time I finished, I knew I had something special.
 * The story behind her song Try me


 * Everything happened organically. The fact that so many people resonate with it makes me feel really good. I'm happy they can feel it.
 * Her reply when asked if she envisioned the popularity of the song Try me


 * It was just really crazy. I couldn't believe it. I still can't believe it. That was when I realized things have actually changed.
 * The most memorable experience so far in her career


 * Locally, I'm definitely hoping for Burna Boy, Wizkid, and Niniola. I'm also hoping for my friend, Dami Oniru. I'm hoping we can release some of our collaborations. Internationally, I'd like Stormzy, Ms Banks, and maybe Khalid. This is the longest shot ever but I want to work with Frank Ocean. Koffee as well! She's top on my list.
 * Artistes she is hoping to collaborate with in the near future


 * Well, I’ve never felt more connected with my fans like that before. It just felt like we were all in one room and it was a lot of people, but it felt like we might as well have been in a big ass living room, just vibing. I really felt like that experience and the presence was just incredibly intense. I haven’t let go so much as I did before that day in terms of performing.
 * Talking about what made the night performance at the Somerset House so special for her (19 July)


 * I had a show the night before, so on Friday I was just sleeping the whole day.
 * Talking about her collaboration with Beyoncé on the album Renaissance (21 September)


 * But I wasn’t thinking about how to be better in the limelight, I was just thinking of how to be a better person in general, the best possible version of myself. And I think once you start being visible, a lot of these things that you didn’t know existed start coming to light, you start knowing yourself more, too.
 * Reflecting on the way she and her life has changed since becoming one of the most popular artists from Africa in four short years. (29 November)


 * What I hope that God does through me, is for the image of the African woman to be changed to something luxurious, or desired, or sought after. For the demand of the African woman to go up… Let us not be chasing foreign things, let us be something to be chased. And that can’t just happen with me; it’s a together thing. It has to happen with a whole industry of women already doing real and amazing things. That’s the future.
 * Her outlook on the future


 * The more power the people have, the greater we become as a whole.
 * Quoted from one of her interviews (29 November)


 * I don’t want to be somebody that follows; I don’t want to be the ‘after’ person.
 * Talking about how she wants her song to sound and authentic (29 November)


 * When I see any one of you gracing a stage, I feel like that’s me. We’re all winning and we’re about to move in like a tsunami… know that love lives on this side. As we show the world how it’s done.
 * Showering praise on a host of west African women in music who inspire her.


 * I think the perfectionism is definitely a Nigerian thing. For me, it’s definitely Lagos. Because if you check around the world, Nigerians are always the best at whatever they’re doing, whether that’s braids, hair, make-up, doctors… They’ll give you food and it’ll be over good, so that when you’re paying them, you know why.
 * Her core and resolve for greatness


 * It’s not necessarily people, it’s really just a system. But once you’re an artist you’re not really an artist, you’re an entertainer – your life is entertainment for people. It’s a system of distraction.
 * Talking about being a singer, and what the society expects
 * “I think it’s important to be real with yourself and the people around you.”