Temilade Openiyi, known professionally as Tems, is a Nigerian singer, songwriter, and record producer whose distinctive blend of Alté, R&B, and Afrobeats has made her one of the most decorated female artists to emerge from Nigeria’s contemporary music scene. Born in Lagos, she built her sound independently, teaching herself production before her voice caught the attention of some of the biggest names in global music, from Wizkid to Drake to Rihanna. She has since become a two-time Grammy winner and the first African artist to debut at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 as a featured vocalist.
What sets Tems apart in a genre often driven by high-energy dance anthems is her introspective, soul-inflected style, built on emotional restraint rather than volume. Her rise has been defined by a string of high-profile collaborations that preceded her own solo catalog, followed by a critically acclaimed debut album that cemented her as a headline act in her own right. This article covers her life, family background, education, musical evolution, awards, business interests, and what is publicly known about her net worth.
Tems Quick Facts
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Temilade Openiyi |
| Stage Name | Tems |
| Date of Birth | June 11, 1995 |
| Age | 31 years, 4 months, 14 days |
| Place of Birth | Lagos, Nigeria |
| Nationality | Nigerian |
| Profession | Singer, songwriter, record producer |
| Genres | Alté, R&B, Afrobeats |
| Years Active | 2018present |
| Parents | Nigerian mother; British-Nigerian father (divorced when she was five) |
| Relationship Status | Not publicly confirmed to be in a committed relationship as of 2026 |
| Net Worth | Estimated in the low millions of dollars; exact figure not publicly known (see Net Worth section) |
Early Life and Family
Temilade Openiyi was born on June 11, 1995, in Lagos, Nigeria, to a Nigerian mother and a British-Nigerian father. Shortly after her birth, the family moved to the United Kingdom, but her parents divorced when she was around five years old, and she and her older brother returned to Nigeria with their mother while her father remained in the UK. Sources describe her as the second child of the family, with one older brother.
Back in Nigeria, the family lived first in Ilupeju before moving through Victoria Island, Lekki, and Ajah as she grew up. Raised in a Christian household, Tems was exposed early to gospel music through her mother, though she later branched out toward artists like Aaliyah, Lauryn Hill, Amy Winehouse, and Destiny’s Child as her own taste developed. She has described her upbringing as relatively comfortable despite her parents’ separation, and has credited her mother specifically as a steady, formative presence throughout her childhood and into her music career.
Education
Tems attended Dowen College in Lekki, Lagos, for her secondary education. She subsequently moved to Johannesburg, South Africa, to study at Monash South Africa University, where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics. During her university years, she began developing an interest in sound production, teaching herself the skills she would later use to produce her own early records, including her debut single.
How Tems Started Her Music Career
Tems began showing interest in music during childhood, learning guitar and piano while still in school. By the time she reached her mid-teens, she had made a deliberate decision to stop listening to other artists for a period, a choice aimed at developing her own voice and style rather than absorbing outside influences. That approach shaped the genre-blending sound, drawing on Alté, Afrobeats, soul, and hip-hop, that would eventually define her music.
She launched her career officially in 2018 with the self-produced single “Mr Rebel” (also referred to in some sources as “Rebel”), which introduced her to the Nigerian Alté scene and signaled her talent as both a vocalist and a producer. Her 2019 follow-up, “Try Me,” proved to be her true breakthrough, going viral and earning her a growing national following as one of the most distinctive new voices in Nigerian music.
Tems’s Rise to International Fame
Tems’s international profile began building rapidly following her 2020 debut EP, For Broken Ears, which included the hit single “Damages” and established her within Nigeria’s music scene as one of its most promising talents. That same year, she was featured on Wizkid’s “Essence,” a song that would go on to become one of the most significant Afrobeats crossover hits of the decade, particularly after a remix featuring Justin Bieber pushed it into the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100.
Her international collaborations continued to escalate. In 2021, she released her second EP, If Orange Was a Place, featuring “Found” with Brent Faiyaz, and appeared on Drake’s “Fountains” from Certified Lover Boy, which reached number 26 on the Hot 100. In 2022, she contributed to the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack, covering Bob Marley’s “No Woman, No Cry” and co-writing Rihanna’s “Lift Me Up,” which earned her nominations at the Academy Awards, Golden Globes, and Grammy Awards. That same year, she was sampled on Future and Drake’s “Wait for U,” which debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, making Tems the first African female artist to appear on a number-one single on the chart. The song won the Grammy Award for Best Melodic Rap Performance in 2023, marking her first Grammy win.
Tems’s Albums and Music Career
Tems’s catalog centers on one full studio album alongside three extended plays that built her reputation before its release.
- For Broken Ears (2020): Her debut EP, featuring the hit single “Damages,” which established her as a rising force in the Nigerian music scene.
- If Orange Was a Place (2021): Her second EP, featuring “Found” with Brent Faiyaz and “Crazy Tings,” further building her international profile.
- Born in the Wild (2024): Her debut studio album, an 18-track project released through RCA Records and Since ’93, featuring collaborations with J. Cole and Asake. The album peaked at number 56 on the Billboard 200 and earned three Grammy nominations, including for Best Global Music Album. Tems has described the record as a story of transformation, comparing it to a journey “from a cub to a lioness.”
- Love Is a Kingdom (2025): Her third EP, released following the acclaim and touring success of Born in the Wild.
Tems’s Biggest Songs
A handful of songs mark the clearest turning points in her career. “Try Me” (2019) remains her breakout moment, the song that first carried her name beyond Nigeria’s Alté scene. “Essence,” her feature on Wizkid’s 2020 single, became one of the most significant Afrobeats crossover records of its era and remains closely associated with her international arrival.
“Free Mind,” from For Broken Ears, became her first solo entry on the Billboard Hot 100, spending 22 weeks at number one on the R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart and setting records for a female artist on that chart. “Wait for U,” her feature on the Future and Drake single, debuted atop the Billboard Hot 100 and won her first Grammy Award. More recently, “Love Me JeJe,” from Born in the Wild, became a fan-favorite and won Tems her second Grammy Award, for Best African Music Performance, at the 2025 ceremony.
Awards and Achievements
Tems has won two Grammy Awards. Her first came in 2023 for Best Melodic Rap Performance as a featured artist on Future and Drake’s “Wait for U.” Her second came at the 67th Annual Grammy Awards in 2025, when “Love Me JeJe” won Best African Music Performance, a category that also included nominees Asake and Wizkid’s “MMS” and Chris Brown’s “Sensational” featuring Davido and Lojay. Her debut album, Born in the Wild, earned an additional three Grammy nominations, including Best Global Music Album.
Beyond the Grammys, Tems has received nominations at the Academy Awards and Golden Globes for her songwriting contribution to Rihanna’s “Lift Me Up,” from the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack. In 2021, she ranked number one on the Billboard Next Big Sound chart and number five on the Billboard Emerging Artist chart, and she has been widely described in Nigerian media as the country’s most awarded female musical act. Her touring success has also become part of her achievement record: her September 2024 concert at Radio City Music Hall in New York grossed $548,000, reportedly the highest-grossing single concert by a Nigerian female musician.
Tems’s International Influence
Tems occupies a distinct role in Afrobeats’ global rise, less as a hitmaker of dancefloor anthems and more as the genre’s most recognized R&B and Alté crossover voice. Her guest features with Wizkid, Drake, and Future opened doors that her own solo catalog later walked through, and her Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for songwriting placed her in rooms that few Afrobeats-associated artists had previously reached.
Her work with Beyoncé on RENAISSANCE and her soundtrack contributions to Black Panther: Wakanda Forever further extended her reach into major American cultural moments beyond music charts alone. Whether she should be considered the definitive female counterpart to Afrobeats’ “Big Three” of Wizkid, Davido, and Burna Boy is a subjective question debated among fans and critics, but her Grammy record and songwriting credits give her a measurably distinct kind of international recognition within the genre.
Tems’s Personal Life
Tems has kept her romantic life notably private compared to many of her peers. As of 2026, she has not publicly confirmed being in a committed relationship. In interviews, including a widely discussed appearance on the YouTube show Is the Seat Taken, she described having what she called a “mini boyfriend,” a term she used for a casual romantic connection without the depth of a formal, committed relationship, while stating she has never had a “lover” in the fullest sense of a serious partnership. She has been the subject of dating rumors involving other industry figures, but none of these have been confirmed by Tems herself, so they should be treated as speculation rather than fact.
Tems’s Family
Tems has generally kept detailed information about her family out of the public record beyond the basic facts of her upbringing. Her mother, whose name is not widely publicized, raised Tems and her older brother in Nigeria following her parents’ divorce, and Tems has spoken warmly about her mother’s role in her life, including thanking her directly during her 2025 Grammy acceptance speech, noting the ceremony fell close to her mother’s birthday. Her father, who is of British-Nigerian background, remained in the United Kingdom after the divorce, and detailed public information about their relationship in adulthood is limited.
Tems’s Businesses, Endorsements and Sources of Income
Tems draws income from several overlapping sources, with touring and live performance among the most significant. Her Born in the Wild World Tour, which ran through 2024 and into 2025 and 2026, included sold-out dates at major venues such as London’s O2 Arena and New York’s Madison Square Garden and Radio City Music Hall, with individual performance fees reported to exceed $500,000 at some shows by 2026. Streaming and songwriting royalties form a substantial secondary stream, with her catalog surpassing one billion combined streams and her songwriting credit on Rihanna’s “Lift Me Up” continuing to generate revenue.
She has also built an endorsement portfolio that includes reported partnerships with global brands such as Puma and Tommy Hilfiger. She operates under her own creative and management umbrella, Leading Vibe, alongside her recording relationship with RCA Records and the label Since ’93. As with most celebrity income breakdowns, these figures come from industry estimates and public reporting rather than confirmed financial disclosures, and gross revenue from touring or endorsements should not be assumed to equal personal profit or net worth.
Tems Net Worth
Tems’s exact net worth is not publicly known. Public estimates vary considerably depending on how different sources calculate her streaming royalties, touring income, songwriting credits, and endorsement deals, and because none of these figures are based on audited financial statements or tax records.
Published estimates for 2026 vary widely, reflecting how quickly her earning power has grown since her breakout years. Some earlier and more conservative estimates placed her net worth as low as $1 million to $3 million, largely based on limited public information from her earlier career. More recent 2026 estimates, accounting for her touring scale, endorsement deals, and catalog royalties, range from roughly $6 million to $10 million, with at least one industry analysis estimating her total annual gross earnings, before taxes, management fees, and production costs, at approximately $13 million. Given how much these figures diverge depending on methodology and the year of estimate, they should be read as a general range rather than a settled figure.
Given this spread, a reasonable and cautious estimate places Tems’s net worth in the range of several million dollars as of 2026, with the more recent, higher estimates reflecting her expanded touring revenue and brand partnerships following the success of Born in the Wild, though this remains an estimate rather than a confirmed figure.
Tems’s Lifestyle and Assets
Detailed, verified information about Tems’s real estate holdings, vehicles, or other high-value personal assets is not consistently documented across credible sources. Unlike some of her Afrobeats peers, she has not cultivated a public image built around luxury cars or property, and figures circulating online about specific assets should be treated with caution rather than presented as confirmed fact.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Tems’s real name? Her birth name is Temilade Openiyi.
How old is Tems? She was born on June 11, 1995, in Lagos, Nigeria.
Where is Tems from? She was born and largely raised in Lagos, Nigeria, with a brief period in the United Kingdom as a young child.
What is Tems’s nationality? She is Nigerian.
Who are Tems’s parents? Her mother is Nigerian, and her father is British-Nigerian; the two divorced when Tems was around five years old.
When did Tems start her music career? She released her debut single, “Mr Rebel,” in 2018, followed by her breakout single, “Try Me,” in 2019.
What is Tems’s most successful song? “Essence,” her feature on Wizkid’s 2020 single, and “Wait for U,” her feature on Future and Drake’s Grammy-winning 2022 single, are generally considered her most significant crossover moments.
How many albums does Tems have? She has released one studio album, Born in the Wild (2024), alongside three EPs: For Broken Ears (2020), If Orange Was a Place (2021), and Love Is a Kingdom (2025).
What awards has Tems won? She has won two Grammy Awards, for Best Melodic Rap Performance (“Wait for U,” 2023) and Best African Music Performance (“Love Me JeJe,” 2025), and has received Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for songwriting on Rihanna’s “Lift Me Up.”
What is Tems’s estimated net worth? Her exact net worth is not publicly known; published estimates for 2026 range from roughly $6 million to $10 million, though some estimates run lower or higher depending on methodology.
Is Tems married? No. As of 2026, she has not publicly confirmed being in a committed relationship or marriage.
What genre of music does Tems make? Her sound blends Alté, R&B, and Afrobeats, marked by soulful, introspective vocals.
Conclusion
From a self-taught producer releasing music independently in Lagos to a two-time Grammy winner with songwriting credits on a Rihanna hit, Tems’s career reflects a deliberate, distinctive path within Afrobeats’ global rise. Her catalog, built first through high-profile features and later through her own acclaimed debut album, Born in the Wild, shows an artist who has consistently prioritized emotional depth over easy crossover appeal. Her continued presence at major international ceremonies and soundtracks signals that her influence on the genre’s next chapter is still unfolding.
Related reading: [Wizkid Biography], [Burna Boy Biography], [Ayra Starr Biography]