Grammy award-winning singer, Temilade Openiyi, popularly known as Tems, came from humble beginnings, according to her manager, Muyiwa Awoniyi.
Speaking during a recent episode of the Afrobeats Intelligence podcast, Awoniyi revealed that when he first met the singer, she had a mere N200 in her bank account. Despite her financial hardship, her resolve and sense of purpose immediately stood out to him.
“There was something Tems did that made me say, ‘I don’t want to do a managerial contract with you, let’s do a company,’” he disclosed.
Recounting how their working relationship started, he said: “When she asked me to be her manager, I agreed and told her I would send over a contract. We had already reached a verbal agreement. Normally, when you give paperwork to an artiste to sign, they stall or drag their feet. But in Tems’ case, she was actually chasing me to sign my part of the contract. I had never experienced that before.”
Awoniyi, impressed by her uncommon sense of responsibility and trust, decided their bond should go beyond a mere business agreement. “I was like, ‘You don’t mind signing paperwork? Wait, let’s not do this the usual way. You’re someone I can rock with for life. Let’s start a company instead,’” he said.
According to him, the pair had been friends for about three months before any conversation about working together even came up.
“Back then, when I was doing my podcast, she would just sit there quietly while my cousin and I talked,” he said.
He went on to describe how dire her financial situation was at the time. “She wasn’t financially buoyant in any capacity. When I met her, she had just N200 in her account. I had a production company then. If I had money, I’d buy food,” he narrated.
Awoniyi was particularly struck by Tems’ selflessness, recalling how, despite being broke, she would still order food for them.
“She didn’t even have a way of earning money, yet she was still generous. That’s when I realised she was different from anyone I had met in Nigeria,” he said.
Tems has since risen to become one of Nigeria’s most acclaimed musical exports, with a Grammy award and a growing global fan base to her name.