The new single arrives before his Coachella debut this Sunday
After telling Rolling Stone that his last single, “Baby (Is It a Crime)” had the biggest debut streaming day of his career, Rema is back with “Bout U.” The track is led by punchy electric guitar (the single artwork looks indebted to one of the greatest guitarists of all time, Prince) and finds Rema deeply smitten with a “blazing” woman. “Hold my hand girl/Time is running out,” he croons over layers of harmonized ad-libs. “Girl lets make it count/This love affair got me living in the clouds/Please don’t let me down.” Rema co-produced “Bout U” with his frequent collaborator London.
As one of Rolling Stone‘s Future of Music cover stars last month, Rema said his ideal partner is peaceful, loyal, and transparent. At the time, he wasn’t dating anyone, but shared that he would like to get married one day. “The timeline matters, but I don’t specifically have a time. But I feel like it’s very important, especially because I am not in a big family,” he said, thinking back to the way he, his mother, and his siblings were ostracized after his dad died when he was eight years old.
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Rema commanded a lively crowd at the Moody Theatre headlining the fourth night of Rolling Stone’s Future of Music showcase at SXSW in Austin. “Africa is the future of music because it’s unique and it knows no boundary,” he said in the clip that ushered him on stage, filmed on the set of his Future of Music cover shoot. His issue makes him the first Black African solo star to be featured on the cover and the first Afrobeats act to earn the distinction in the magazine’s history.
Rema will make his Coachella debut this Sunday, April 13, on the Mojave Stage at 6:40 p.m. PT. As a stop on his upcoming world tour, he’ll make his debut at Madison Square Garden in New York City on May 3.
