Before her first full album came out, Tems had already won a Grammy and been nominated for an Oscar. The Lagos singer’s deep, smoky voice appeared on some of the biggest songs of the early 2020s, from Wizkid’s Essence to Future and Drake’s Wait for U. She co-wrote Rihanna’s Lift Me Up for the film Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. By the time her debut album, Born in the Wild, arrived in 2024, she was already one of the most sought-after voices in music.
Early life and the arrest in Uganda
Temilade Openiyi was born in Lagos in 1995 and spent part of her childhood in the United Kingdom before returning to Nigeria. She studied economics and worked in digital marketing before committing to music. She taught herself music production and released her early songs independently. Try Me, released in 2019, built a following among young Nigerians. In 2020, Tems was briefly detained in Uganda after performing at a concert, an incident that drew wide support from Nigerian fans and artists.
Essence, Drake and the first Grammy
Essence, her collaboration with Wizkid from the 2020 album Made in Lagos, became a global hit and introduced her to millions of new listeners. She featured on Drake’s Fountains and on Future’s Wait for U with Drake, which reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100. Wait for U won the Grammy for Best Melodic Rap Performance in 2023, making Tems one of the few Nigerian women to win a Grammy.
She co-wrote Rihanna’s Lift Me Up, which earned an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song in 2023. Her debut album, Born in the Wild, was released in 2024 and explored her journey, faith and independence.
A second Grammy and her voice
In 2025, her song Love Me JeJe won the Grammy for Best African Music Performance. Critics often describe her voice as unusually deep and expressive, setting her apart from many pop singers. Tems has inspired young Nigerian women to produce and release their own music without waiting for a label. Tems has also been associated with Leading Vibe, the company she set up to support her independent career and creative team.
Tems taught herself to produce music in a Lagos bedroom. A few years later, she was writing songs for Rihanna and collecting Grammys, still sounding like nobody else.
