Tems Tamed the Wild at the Fillmore Miami Beach

In the four years since her career-changing song "Essence" with Wizkid propelled her into the global limelight, Tems has already influenced a new wave of Afrobeats-infused hits.

Born Temilade Openiyi in Lagos, Nigeria, the songstress rose to prominence shortly after debuting her first song, "Mr Rebel," in 2018. Six years ago, she was finding her place in the genre as a budding post-college singer-songwriter. Now, she's the coveted artist on everyone's radar.

Future enlisted her amber-toned vocals on his first #1 hit song, "Wait for You," in 2022, and she teamed up with the likes of Drake, Asake, and most recently, J. Cole on her latest single, "Free Fall" from her debut album, Born in the Wild. She was recruited for the critically acclaimed Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack in 2022 for an orchestral rendition of Bob Marley's "No Woman No Cry." She also helped write Rihanna's "Lift Me Up," which was featured on the same soundtrack. Last year, she shocked fans when her vocals appeared alongside Grace Jones on "Move," an industrial dancehall earworm from Beyoncé's magnum opus Renaissance. That same year, she snagged a Grammy for "Best Melodic Rap Performance" on Future's "Wait for You."

As Afrobeats continues to claim global dominance, Tems has become an enviable piece to the genre's success. It's why fans showed up in droves to watch her first South Beach performance and the first stop of the North American leg of her international Born in the Wild Tour at the Fillmore Miami Beach.

The Thursday night sky was clear and calm after aggressive thunderstorms soaked the city. It seemed even Mother Nature was attuned to Tems' feline superpower. Inside the venue, eager fans clung to the merch table or clamored to get the best view of the stage. Recent viral clips of Tems performing her infectious summer anthem "Love Me JeJe" on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon featured the songstress in a curvaceous milky leather jumpsuit that invoked heart-eye emojis across social media. No one wanted an obstructed view of her angelic aurora.

The show opened with a diasporic love letter from Miami's own DJ Aya's global set, followed by an intimate performance from Dutch singer-songwriter Naomi Sharon.

Tems graced the stage around 9 p.m. to an engulfing roar from the crowd. Wearing a draping, pink and black animal-print halter top and matching pants, she contrasted a grassy vignette on stage and the black attire adorned by her band.

Throughout the night, she performed new and older songs to excited fans who belted out the lyrics to singles from her latest album. Occasionally, a fan in the crowd held up a sign stating, "Tems, Your Music Is Therapy." Unlike her Afrobeats peers, she wasn't flanked by dancers, but her essence doesn't need extras. She grooved and whined across the stage to songs like "Wickedest" and "Love Me JeJe" and teased two male fans with a sexy freestyle where she cleverly swapped lyrics with their names.

The waist whining and one-on-one interactions belied critiques about her past performances where she appeared more stagnant on stage. Her stage presence last night might've been the result of practice, but the fluidity and comfort she exuded leaned toward Tems blossoming into the fullness of her superstardom.

She reiterated her gratitude to the packed Miami crowd, saying, "It's my first time in Miami, and I didn't know what to expect. You guys are special as fuck." She continued the show with her most popular hits, "Higher," "Essence," and "Me & U," and she introduced a bevy of new songs like "Ready" and "Gangsta" and circled her set right back to where it all started with a performance of "Mr Rebel."

The nearly 90-minute set culminated with her powerfully belting out "Free Mind" to the theater sparkling with phone lights. Tems is charting new territory for chameleon artists who can blend into any genre. Last night, she tamed the wild and proved to the world that she's blooming into a global starlet who's just getting started.