Rema (Musician)

Some Lesser Known Facts About Rema

• Rema is a Nigerian musician, rapper, and singer who became popular in 2019 for his song Dumebi. The singer admitted that he developed an interest in singing and rapping when he was in school.

• Rema was quite young when he started his singing career. It was by singing at the Christ of Mercy church with Alpha P., where he was part of a program called “Rap Nation” that taught kids how to rap for the congregation, he realized his full potential.

• When Rema was 14 years old, he was gifted a smartphone by the members of the church. He used to download some tunes on his phone and practiced freestyle on it. ^[12]The Guardian

• Rema was discovered in by D’Prince in February 2018 when he went viral with a video of him freestyling on the beats of afro-pop singer D’Prince’s track “Gucci Gang.” D’Prince then brought him to Lagos and made him a part of the Mavin Records family.

• His father died under mysterious circumstances in a hotel room at Bins Hotel in Benin City in 2008. Soon after, his brother died too. Rema was just 15 years old at that time and had to “man up” for his family.

• His song Iron Man was not supported much by his teammates but gained immense popularity after US President Barack Obama stated that it has become a part of his daily playlist.

• Rema dislikes labeling himself as belonging to a particular music genre. However, in 2021, he claimed that he is going to call his style of music “Afrorave” which is a subgenre of Afrobeat. Afrorave is a mix of afrobeat and Indian and Arabic music. His music is considered to stand between the Afrobeat and alternative genres but Rema wants to explore more genres. In his words,

That’s what’s called my sound. I don’t want to name it because, when you name it, people will try and put me in a box and compare me with a lot of people. Right now, I just want to be in my own zone, my own world, and just do my thing with no competition.”

• In September 2021, Rema and his mate Arya Starr were made the brand ambassador for the popular beverage brand Pepsi.

• Rema loves to play football and is a huge fan of the football club Manchester United F.C.

• On 15 June 2020 Rema, Burna Boy, and Wizkid became the only Nigerians to be nominated for the BET Awards 2020. Rema was nominated as Best Viewers Choice: International Act at the 2020 BET Awards.

• Rema was influenced by a couple of musicians while he was growing up. The artists include Michael Jackson, 2Face, TB1, and Frank Edwards. He considered himself a “noisy” child but knew how to drive his energy into something productive. He also took inspiration from Nigerian Label Mo’ Hits era which monopolized the afro-pop scene with singers like Wande Coal, Dr. Sid, and D’Prince.

I was influenced by Drake’s style. Every day I rehearsed, and the mix of melodies and my flows were a good combination.”

• He was given the nickname “rap nation leader” by the members of the church that he attended during his teen years.

• Rema’s songs were a part of the FIFA 21 soundtracks.

• Rema ran away from his house after the loss of his father and brother when he was 15 years old. He moved to Accra to find work and earn money as he had two sisters and a mother to look after. He says, “Being the only man to provide for my family, I had to get my hands dirty,” he said ^[13]Crack Magazine

• Rema is very religious and has attended congregation his entire life. He even devotes the reasons behind his success to the church as he was never educated in music professionally. He says,

I cannot personalize it; it’s beyond my power. At this point, it’s quite tough even singing on normal notes. I don’t even know what normal notes sound like anymore. I’m not super musically educated, all I know is how music should sound. I know what a hit song sounds like. I can’t give credit to myself.”

• Rema took a stand for his fellow protestors at the #endSARS movement against the killing of an unarmed man and the musician Daniel Chibuike, known as Sleek, by a Nigerian Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) officer. The protests also lead to the killing of a lot of innocent people by the national army. The singer then also released his single, Peace of Mind, where he documented his feelings towards this whole scenario.

• Rema loves playing games on his PlayStation whenever he has time. He admitted that he was never good at it but with practice, he was able to beat his friends at his favorite games.

• Rema’s best moment was when he made his first million. To celebrate this, he gifted his other a brand-new car. ^[14]Amelia Dimoldenberg – YouTube

  

• Rema loves to eat Jollof rice which is a kind of Nigerian fried rice. He revealed that he loves it so much but his mother only used to make it during Christmas when he was a child and it had thus gained special holiday connotations for him.

• Rema dislikes when someone calls him. He prefers to text people rather than talk on the phone.

• He is an iOS fan and has a lot of Apple gadgets.

• The Nigerian singer has limited cooking proficiency and can only cook fries, eggs, and noodles. He says that he knows how to cook but he forgets because he does not get enough time to practice. ^[15]Lombe Posa – YouTube

• According to him, the worst movie that he has ever watched was a Benin movie called Ozebba because it had weird characters – with big bellies and thin legs. ^[16]Rema – YouTube

• In an interview, Rema revealed that he would rather stay at home than go out to party. He is not a party person.

• Rema revealed that his song Why (2019) was inspired by a heartbreak he experienced when he was a kid.

• Rema loves to swim and be near the sea. He also knows how to surf.

  

• Rema has collaborated with Oppo Nigeria, Monster Energy, and Pepsi, among other brands.

• The singer admitted that the inspiration behind the song ‘Love’ from Raven and Rose is a girl who he was FaceTiming when he was recording the song. He said that all the inspiration came from that one FaceTime call. ^[17]Lombe Posa – YouTube

• Rema got a chance to meet his lookalike and called her his ‘twin sister’ and even posted a picture of the same on his social media.

  

• Rema consumes alcoholic beverages occasionally but his consumption is only limited to wine. ^[18]Amelia Dimoldenberg – YouTube