Rema’s “Calm Down” Becomes First Afrobeats Song to Garner a Billion US Streams

Rema’s hit song “Calm Down” has made Afrobeats history in the US, becoming the first Afrobeats track to earn over one billion on-demand streams, according to Chart Data. This accolade follows the song’s previous recognition as the “most successful African song of all time.” Released in February 2022 as a single from Rema’s debut album “Rave and Roses,” Billboard analysts attribute the song’s success to its “melancholy slow jam with a subtle hypnotic draw”. The track gained further popularity with a remix featuring US singer Selena Gomez, which has amassed nearly 894 million views on YouTube, making it the most watched music video by a Nigerian artist. That version also became the first African song to spend a year on the Billboard Hot 100 and, ranking number three at some point, the highest-charting track with an Afrobeats artist as the lead.

SOURCE: BBC