29th May, 2021
By Taiwo Okanlawon
Nigerian singer, Temilade Openiyi popularly known as Tems has said that she felt she didn’t do enough on the song ‘Essence’, off Wizkid’s ‘Made in Lagos’ album.
According to the “Damage” crooner, she wanted to rework her part but Wizkid’s team said the one she did was okay.
She said Wizkid also liked her verse on the song.
“Even (on) the day I recorded my verse on the song, I felt I could do better. I asked them to send me the beat again, so I could redo my verse but they (Wizkid’s team) said it was great. I told them I still wanted to ‘top it’ but they did not let me.
“However, I was happy with it. I always like to challenge myself and I used to be such a perfectionist. Wizkid also said he liked it,” she added.
Reacting to a video of an American media personality, Kylie Jenner singing along to ‘Essence’, Tems said, “That was good. When I was in Los Angeles, I was hearing the song in the most random places. I did not even know that people there knew the song. It was quite an experience.”
The song is a fan favourite from Wizkid’s ‘Made In Lagos’. As of today, the audio has 8.7 million streams on YouTube.
The music video is the fourth video from Wizkid’s 2020 album Made in Lagos.
Essence finds Tems and Wizkid longing for physical connection. The young stars glow, Wizkid bare-chested and draped in diamonds, while Tems in slick braids and flowing garb.
The song also made former US President Barack Obama’s list of ‘Favourite Music of 2020’.
According to Obama’s list, the former president has a diversified taste, listening to music from various genres, such as pop, R&B, hip-hop, musical urban and country music.