Nigerian superstar Divine Ikubor, widely known as Rema, has broken his silence on the real meaning behind his striking transformation and why smoking became part of his image. The "Calm Down" hitmaker took to social media on Thursday to commemorate the one-year anniversary of his second studio album, HEIS, and clarify long-standing public assumptions.
According to the singer, the decision to abandon his signature Teddy bear, ditch his mask, embrace tattoos, adopt darker visuals, and even appear smoking, was not a departure from his true self but a bold expression of artistic evolution. Speaking via his official X (formerly Twitter) account, Rema described the entire transition as a symbolic redefinition of his art form.
“HEIS, the Anniversary,” he began. “I expressed a lot of surface-level reasons why I released this project during interviews, but here are a few symbolic details I kept for myself that I’d now like to share,” he wrote.
He added that the HEIS album cover was inspired by Itachi Uchiha, a complex character from the popular Japanese anime Naruto, representing truth hidden behind illusion. Rema explained, “The cover was inspired by Itachi in Naruto. The truth masked as illusion, love buried under what y’all thought was betrayal—change of sound, smoking, looks, aesthetics & choice of color.”
This revelation sets the record straight for fans and critics alike, many of whom had questioned whether Rema’s recent public image was authentic or simply for shock value.
In an interesting parallel, fellow Nigerian rapper Shallipopi previously made a similar claim, revealing in 2023 that he does not smoke despite posing with cigarettes in his visuals. According to him, smoking was purely for aesthetic appeal, not a personal habit.
Rema's transparency marks a growing trend among Nigerian artists who are taking full control of their narratives and redefining mainstream perceptions of artistic identity.
As fans continue to dissect the layers of symbolism within HEIS, Rema’s clarification offers a deeper understanding of how modern creatives use visual language, even controversial ones like smoking, to push boundaries and convey emotion.
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