Temilade Openiyi, known by her stage name “Tems” has a secret: Her music is transcendence. 

Her beats display a heavy influence of Caribbean and African culture, but they also harness a quality that cannot be defined. Many would simplify her sound as simply  “a vibe.” Yet Tems herself calls it “spirit.”

The distinction was made in response to a tweet asking what genre Tems’ music should fall under. The singer responded, “It’s called Spirit. It’s new to y’all, some are currently tryna tap into it, creating fusions of it. Which means it’s growing.” Though she later shared with Teen Vogue that her response was partly a joke, she agreed that describing her music as ‘spirit’ seemed to make the most sense since that is the place where her music comes from.