Nigerian Afrobeats superstar Rema has released his Sophomore album, ‘HEIS’. ‘Benin Boys’ and ‘Hehe’ had earlier been released as lead singles.
On the 9th of July 2024, Rema took social media platforms by storm and sent fans and music lovers into a frenzy with the announcement of the release. Two days after the announcement, he surprised the industry with the project.
The project comes as a surprise because after he shared a video snippet hinting at it, its cover art and tracklist were ever unveiled. The singer only shared its release date and held a listening party for it in Lagos. During the listening party, he disclosed that he was thrown into the limelight at a very tender age and spoke about the challenges that came with it.
‘HEIS’ opens a new chapter for Rema, showcasing his lyrical prowess and creative and artistic evolution and transition. It also symbolizes his growth when it comes to exploring different productions and instrumentations.
In the newly released project, which has gained much attention and sparked heated arguments and speculations online, the singer runs through as an artist who has evolved and transitioned from recording low-tempo songs like his breakthrough song ‘Dumebi’ to championing his roots and fighting for validation and recognition for his contributions in the industry, especially the Afrobeats fraternity. Having ‘Calm Down’ as the biggest Afrobeats song in the history of the genre, a record which has garnered over 1 billion streams, he believes he deserves the recognition he gets.
The ‘Calm Down’ hitmaker features only two artists in the 11-track album which are street pop superstar Shallipopi and rapper Odumodou Blvk.
In ‘Benin Boys’ which features his hometown fellow artist Shallipopi, the two singers write a love letter using their craft and artistic tool to their hometown ‘Benin City, which is a town in Nigeria. Another top-notch song on the album is ‘March Am’, which embodies his ambition and vision.
In ‘Yayo’, Rema wears his braggadocio hat and boasts of his achievements while in ‘Hehe’, he confidently and boldly responds to and addresses his critics and naysayers. He seems not to mind whatever his critics say about him online because the more they talk, the more he rakes in millions with his craft. He also expresses his desire to be respected for his contributions to the Afrobeats culture.
‘HEIS’ follows the singer’s debut album ‘Rave And Roses’ which was released in March 2022, amassing huge streams and topping charts across the globe. It featured international and mainstream artists such as 6Lack, AJ Tracey and Yesult.
