Selena Gomez and Rema can’t calm down from the excitement of the Billboard Music Awards. The two musicians made quite a pair, taking home the award for the newly minted Top Afrobeats Song category.
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Rema’s song “Calm Down” won the prestigious award. The remix features Gomez singing in accompaniment. The duo’s musical fusion proved to be incredibly popular with over 1 billion streams on Spotify. It also reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, which was a first for Rema. When it comes to credit, Gomez gives all the acclaim to Rema.
In her acceptance speech, Gomez said, “Thank you guys so, so much for this award. This is honestly Rema’s doing. He chose me to be a part of such an incredible song. So I want to thank him and thank all of you for streaming and listening and I wish we could be there. But thank you!”
Likewise, Rema had a few words to say. In particular, the musician highlighted his single as a celebration of the genre as a whole. He said, “This honor for ‘Calm Down’ is a celebration of unity and the global domination of Afrobeats. I want to say a big shoutout to Selena Gomez, Mavin Records, Josie Ward as well as the amazing fans who supported us all the way to this point. I want to say a big thank you to Billboard — I’m very grateful. All the way from Nigeria, Rema. One love.”
“Calm Down” was also nominated for Top Billboard Global 200 Song as well as Top Radio Song, Top Collaboration, and Top Billboard Global 200 Song. As far as the Top Afrobeats Artist, Burna Boy ultimately claimed that title. Still, Rema’s accomplishment furthers the recognition for the genre. This was the first year that Afrobeats had a best song category.
So how did this collaboration begin? Well, Gomez started a correspondence with Rema, mentioning that she was a fan of his work. It turned out that the feeling was mutual, and before long, the two artists formed a collaboration.
“It started that from friendship, to colliding our teams together, and everyone is like a big family right now. It was very much organic, and we made it happen, and it’s just so huge,” Rema told Billboard. “I’m amazed.”
Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images for MTV
