Afrobeats sensation Divine Ikubor, also known as Rema, has revealed the impact of his father’s death on his upbringing.
Rema shared that his father’s passing placed the responsibility of providing for his family on his young shoulders, causing him to sacrifice his childhood.
In an honest interview with GRM, the 24-year-old expressed his desire to regain a sense of youthfulness. He confessed to turning to smoking cigarettes as a way to feel liberated and rebellious once more.
Despite being of legal age, Rema faced backlash for his decision to smoke due to his status as a public figure. .
Rema said, “I really wanted to feel like a child again… I feel like I grew up too fast. Life switched up on me crazy when I lost my dad and my brother. The weight was just on my shoulder and forced me to sell my childhood to provide for my family.
“God willing, everything happened well, it happened fast. And with fast fame, comes fast maturity. It’s just like never ending level of seriousness. So much adults. So much meetings. I didn’t even rolled with my age mates.
“So this project [‘HeIs’], I just want to be a child. And it’s coming out. It’s not me forcing it out. It just sparked in my spirit. I just want to feel young again. I just to be a rebel. You know, kids make mistakes and it’s acceptable. But when you’re a teenager and you make the same mistake your peers would make, everyone will come for you just because you’re in the spotlight.
“I know people who smoked a cigarette when they were 13 and I’m 24 smoking a cigarette because I just want to feel free and break some rules. All my life just feel so planned and scheduled. I just got tired.”
