Nigerian singer and songwriter Temilade Openiyi better known as Tems, has become the first female African artist to reach one billion Spotify streams.
Her work with American rappers Future and Drake on the popular song Wait For U, which just surpassed one billion plays on the global streaming service, allowed her to accomplish this incredible feat.
Higher, a song from Tems’ 2020 first EP, For Broken Ears, is sampled in Wait For U, which was released in 2022.
As a result of the song’s enormous worldwide appeal and number one debut on the US Billboard Hot 100, Tems became the first African musician to do so.
Beyond its commercial success, Wait For U received two nominations at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards: Best Rap Song and Best Melodic Rap Performance, ultimately winning the latter.
In other news, The 67th Grammys undoubtedly saw Nigerian artists dominating the Best African Music Performance category.
Sensational music star, Tems took home the award courtesy of her hit track, ‘Love Me Jeje’, marking her second Grammy win.
The category, which was introduced in 2024 and won by South African singer Tyla, saw Nigerian artists featured in all the nominated songs.
Tems’ win was a significant achievement, as she beat out strong competition from other notable artists.
Yemi Alade’s “Tomorrow”, Asake’s “MMS” featuring Wizkid, Chris Brown’s “Sensational” featuring Davido and Lojay, and Burna Boy’s “Higher” were all nominated, but Tems’ performance stood out.
Be it as it may, only women have won the ‘Best African Music Performance’ category since its creation.
