Tems and Nocembo: What Their Grammy Wins Mean For African Music
Last weekend at the 66th Grammy Awards, the African contingent was ably represented and scored major wins: Nigerian singer Tems won her collaboration with rappers Future and Drake, Wait For U (Best Melodic Rap), and then the South African trio of Nocembo Zikode, Zakes Bantwini and Wouter Kellerman for Bayethe (Best Global Music Performance). These wins are remarkable by themselves – it’s Tems’ first and the same for Nocembo and Zakes Bantwini. Flautist Wouter Kellerman had won one previously in 2014.
Although Tems won in only one of the two categories she was nominated for, it was almost inevitable that she would win. As noted in this column, when the Grammy nominations were announced in November 2022, her rise was as meteoric as any, so much so that a random commentator on Twitter claimed boldly that she didn’t have any “upcoming phase” and went straight to the top. Of course, that claim is incorrect: true fans remember Tems from 2018, doing small gigs and television show performances in Lagos. However, I understand what that person tried to illustrate: it is rare to experience a rise this swift and dominant. It seems only like yesterday that Tems was the voice of Wizkid’s Essence, becoming the most in-demand voice in global music. That she is the first Nigerian female act to win the Grammy Award is not even as important as how she did it – on her terms. (Pun very much intended).
Tems’ ascension to the pinnacle of music is a nod to her alte roots. In truth, she didn’t have to spend a lot of years trying to break into the brutal Nigerian music scene and make music that could transform her into “the next Tiwa Savage or Yemi Alade or Waje”. Tems sounds like nobody, which is tough to do if one wants a quick break into the pop scene. Tems was content to own her sound and build a loyal fan base – the inimitable alte culture. And if anybody knows anything at all about members of that counterculture, it is that their self-belief and confidence are resolute. This audaciousness helped Tems make Essence her as much as Wizzy’s, leading to the fantastic trajectory of her career thus far.
For Nocembo Zikode, the song in which she won wasn’t even as big as what launched her onto the continental scene a couple of years ago: she was the vocalist of the viral hit Jerusalema by Master KG and which featured Burna Boy on a remix. Unfortunately, as monumental as that record proved to be, it’s a rather bad experience for Nocembo, who has had to drag Master KG and his label to court for compensation issues. According to her, she has yet to receive any payment for her part on the international hit track. The matter is yet to be resolved, but she already scored a bigger prize – the Grammy. Even more striking, the song was put together hurriedly and submitted to the Grammy academy just a day before entries close. As she and her partners have recounted, they submitted Bayethe to the Grammys before they submitted it to the radio. That was in November. Two short months later, she’s on top of the world.
The key takeaway for both success stories is that true talent and good music truly know no limitations. Whilst it might be challenging to achieve if artistes make music solely to win awards, being true to one’s craft will only bring various types of success – Grammys included. It makes it even more compelling if it’s done without compromising one’s conviction about the style of music she makes. This takes us to Africa’s place in global music: there is an endless debate about what should qualify as “African” and “global” music about the Grammy Awards. For me, it all hinges upon the artiste’s identity and authenticity. Tems is Tems, Nocembo is Nocembo, and even when one takes it back as far as the godmothers of African music like Miriam Makeba through successors Yvonne Chakachaka and Angelique Kidjo, each of them had, has a voice that was uniquely theirs and nothing, not even commercial success or major global awards compelled them to compromise. For this generation, Tems and Nocembo’s Grammy wins are a timely illustration of what matters.
Jide Taiwo is a writer and media executive based in Lagos, Nigeria. He tweets via @thejidetaiwo.
Lastly, stay up to date with all you need to know about African music at S.O.A. right here.
