Tems drops debut album Born in the Wild

The 18-tracker, out via RCA/Since ’93, was heralded by ‘Me & U’ and ‘Love Me Jeje’ singles. It follows her EPs: For Broken Ears (2020) and If Orange Was a Place (2021).

A largely autobiographical work, the album is sonically steeped in R&B and fusions of Afrobeats and amapiano. It features fellow Nigerian act Asake and American rapper J. Cole. Ahead of the LP, Tems, a BET Award and Grammy winner, described the collection as her “most special moment.”

On how the work came about, Tems admitted that she “had to step back a bit, to check in with myself and also just find healing from all the trauma and everything I experienced before Tems! “I think I had to unlearn a lot of things. This album is just a new way of me expressing myself, while still centering who I am in it,” she said.

Tems explains that the title track symbolises a journey of transformation, addressing issues like overcoming mental challenges and reaching a state of self-acceptance and thriving.

On ‘Burning’, another song off the LP, Tems discusses fame. “I didn’t really understand what was happening, and everything was happening so fast. And it’s about me looking back on that time and realising that we are all going through something. We all have our internal battles. We all have the things that we struggle with, our triggers.”

Starting 12 June, Tems will commence a world tour in support of the album, playing more than 30 shows with special guests Lekan and Naomi Sharon.