Temilade Openiyi ,known professionally as Tems, is a Nigerian singer, songwriter, and record producer.

She is widely known for her feature on Wizkid single, “Essence“, which reached the top ten of the Hot 100 after a reworked version that has an additional feature from Justin Bieber and earned her a Grammy Award nomination.

That same year, she was featured on Drake’s song, “Fountains“, which debuted and peaked at number 26 on the Hot 100.

In the same year, Tems was ranked number one on the Billboard Next Big Sound chart and number-one on the Billboard Emerging Artists chart.

On 25 September 2020, Tems released her debut extended play, For Broken Ears. On 15 September 2021, she released her second extended play, If Orange Was a Place, after being signed to RCA Records.

Tems was featured alongside Drake on Future‘s 2022 single, “Wait for U“, which debuted atop the Billboard Hot 100, making her the first African artist to debut at number one and the second Nigerian artist to top the chart.

She made history at the 2022 BET awards when she became the first African female to win the Best International Category.

Awards

Tems had a great 2021 and 2022 with her contributions on WIzkid’s ‘Essence’ earning her wide international acclaim. Tems also appeared on Drake’s ‘Certified Lover Boy’ album which further proved her status as one of Nigeria’s biggest international export.

With her win at the 2022 BET awards, Tems joins Ice Prince, Wizkid, Davido, and Burna Boy as Nigerians who have won the BET Awards.

In 2019, Tems was nominated for the Best Vocal Performance (Female) and Best Alternative Song for her single “Mr. Rebel”, during the Headies award.

Controversy:

On 14 December 2020, Tems was arrested alongside Omah Lay after they performed in a show in Uganda. The Ugandan Police authority identified violation of COVID-19 lockdown protocols as the reason for their arrests. The artists felt they were set up. Two days later, the Ugandan government released the two, apologised for the arrests and cleared them of wrongdoing.

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