The smash-hit song Calm Down by Rema, featuring Selena Gomez, has become the first African and Afrobeat song to reach one billion on-demand streams in the US. Thereby, marking an important point in the history of Afrobeat.
In the late 1960s, Fela Anikulapo Kuti and drummer Tony Allen experimented with many contemporary music genres in Nigeria. This in turn led to the birth of Afrobeat. The genres they played with were highlife, fuji, and jùju to serve as the base for the highly upbeat genre. Other things that had influence on earlier Afrobeats were Yoruba vocal rhythm and instrumentation.
Over time, with the help and creativity of amazing artists, Afrobeats has gone global. Day by day, it is gaining popularity and stance all over the world. From Afrobeat festivals and concerts in non-speaking countries like Brazil. To the evident growing numbers of streams on platforms like Apple Music and Spotify. Afrobeats is on worldview. It has even gained recognition at major music awards such as Grammys and BET awards.
The collaboration's Impact on Afrobeat
Divine Ikubor, popularly known as Rema, gained the spotlight in the music scene in 2019 with his self-titled EP. He also gained buzz with his 'Indian style' melodies, leading to a mix of Afrobeat, trap, and Indian influences. Selena Gomez is a versatile American artist who has been in the limelight since her childhood days at Disney. Her music career has consistently topped the charts for many years.
This collaboration, Rema and Selena Gomez, is surely one that has changed the dynamics of Afrobeat for the better. Calm Down was first released in March 2022 as a part of Rema's debut album Raves & Roses. It became even more popular after Selena Gomez collaborated on a remix. The remix went on to become a worldwide sensation. It especially gained popularity in the United States and broke several records for an African artist and an Afrobeat song.
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The Calm Down remix peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, topped the Billboard Pop Airplay Chart, spent more than 52 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, got certified by the RIAA as 4X platinum, and became the most viewed music video by a Nigerian artist with over 596 million views for the original version and 893 million views for the remix.
The song’s success put into the limelight Afrobeat’s ability to resonate with diverse listeners and have a lasting impact on the genre’s evolution. It has also opened doors for international collaborations and paved a pathway for continued growth in the industry.
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