-
I now need police escort when I drive – Tems speaks on adjusting to fame
Nigerian artist Tems shared how fame has reshaped her life, including her everyday activities, in a candid interview on ‘Big Boy TV.‘
She spoke about the challenges that come with being a well-known figure in Nigeria, admitting that her daily routine has drastically changed. Even simple actions, like driving herself around Lagos, have become difficult.
Reflecting on the solitude she used to enjoy, Tems explained, “I am very famous at home, so I can’t really go anywhere.” This shift in her lifestyle highlights the sacrifices and adjustments she’s had to make as her career skyrocketed.
She continued, “And we have area boys, and they know who I am, so I can’t drive anywhere. I used to try to drive before but I almost got mobbed last year because I attempted to drive myself. Now I have to have police cars in front and at the back, and if I want to drive myself, there must be police diving behind me.
If in trying to live a normal life again and feel normal, I have to have police escorts in front and at the back if I’m in Nigeria. If I say I want to be behind the wheel and feel like the normal girl, I can’t.”
The Afrobeat diva also discussed her road to fame, acknowledging that it has not always been easy, particularly given her introverted personality.
She admitted, “I didn’t take it well at first, the fame. After some time I just wanted some alone time and wanted to go back to my room and be alone. Even with my team, adapting to having to talk and have conversations was strange because I never had to do that before so I didn’t take it well at all.
I was very blunt, rude… I wouldn’t say rude, but I’d say things that were obvious, but I wasn’t meant to say them.”
Tems stated how she used to confront people who said negative things about her, unaware that, as a renowned person, she was not expected to do so longer.
“When I hear someone say something about me, I would go to them and be like, ‘do we have a problem? are we okay?’ and then I was told that I wasn’t supposed to confront people,” she said.
She added, “I’m a quiet person, but because someone was spreading rumours about me, I just wanted to know why. Some of these people were like big in the industry, so I couldn’t walk up to them. I had to learn everything from the beginning.”