On Friday, November 21, Nigerian recording artist Temilade Openiyi, better known as Tems, released her third EP, titled Love Is a Kingdom, surreptitiously.
This is her first project since the release of her debut studio album, Born in the Wild, in 2024. Tems has been working with various musicians, both in Nigeria and with international artists.
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Since her emergence in the mainstream in 2019, Tems has continued to disclose why she is one of the most talented musicians in the Nigerian music industry. To further express her creativity and impeccable musical skill, she won a Grammy award for her effort, consistency, and dedication to being the ‘queen of hooks’ in the Nigerian music industry.
In her new music project, Love is a Kingdom, Tems continued showcasing her prowess as a talented singer-songwriter who can create danceable music without losing her sonorous voice or her message of women’s empowerment.
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Within 20 minutes, you can listen to a piece and put it on replay because the project is fun, succinct, and entertaining. The 7-track EP is designed to give fans of the leading vibes something interesting to listen to ahead of the coming festive season.
The project commences with the track, ‘first’, which simply means that Tems is ‘putting herself first’. The singer-songwriter mentioned in the song that she aims to be on top of the ladder and not settle for second place. Further, she mentioned that she is only putting herself first in relationships and other spheres of life.
‘I’m not sure’ sees Tems embody her feminism and women’s empowerment ideologies.
On ‘Big Daddy’, she talks about her love interest. She insinuates in the track that ‘big daddy’ is the pseudonym for her partner or lover. She calls him ‘big daddy’. Additionally, this is the only song on the project that has a music video.
Tems further expresses her love for her partner on ‘Lagos Love’. In this song, Tems is unapologetic about her admiration for her man, and she is letting the world know that she is in love.
Similar to the aforementioned tracks, ‘Mine’ is about love and a relationship with her partner. The other two tracks on the EP, ‘What you need’ and ‘Is there a reason’, have similar themes.
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Conclusion: How Good is it?
Love is a Kingdom is an interesting piece of art that can be enjoyed by lovers. The theme of the music project is love, as explained above; meanwhile, it touches on the issues of insecurity and loneliness in the track, ‘What You Need’. In this music project, Tems can express various emotions with her music, ranging from being an independent woman who knows what she wants for herself to being a lover girl who wants to wrap herself in the arms of her ‘big daddy’.
Love is a kingdom is enjoyable and could be played within the half-hour mark without any skips. Tems is a Grammy award winner; therefore, she is expected to release only profound pieces of music.
Overall, this is a good work of art from Tems.
Who is Tems?
Temilade Openiyi, known professionally as Tems, is a Nigerian singer, songwriter, and record producer. She rose to prominence after being featured on Wizkid’s 2020 single “Essence”, which peaked at number 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart following the release of the remix version with Justin Bieber.
