Rema Gushes Over Busy Signal’s ‘Calm Down’ Remix
Afrobeats star Rema could not contain his excitement on a recent episode of Hot 97’s Ebro In The Morning, after Ebro and the gang introduced him to Busy Signal’s remix of his Billboard-charting hit song, Calm Down.
“That’s hard. I swear that’s hard!” gushed the 22-year-old Benin City native, who revealed that that was his first time hearing the Busy Signal verse. That’s despite, according to Ebro, them playing Busy’s remix “all day long for weeks on end.”
“Nobody told you they had a Jamaican cat – a Dancehall cat on your record?” Ebro quizzed, but Rema simply reaffirmed that he was, in fact, unaware that Busy Signal had done a remix of his song.
Even so, he could not hide the fact that he was beyond impressed with the cover, telling the show’s cast repeatedly, between bursts of laughter, that Busy’s take was “…so, so hard. It blew my mind, blew my mind.”
Rema, who admitted to Dancehall’s influence in his work as an Afrobeats artist, revealed that he had been familiar with a few of Busy Signal’s records, but not as much to the Dancehall veteran’s musical dexterity.
Calm Down, the former Gospel artist’s biggest hit since the 2019 Dumebi, initially peaked at No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100, before rising to the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s Global Excl. U.S. chart following a collaboration with pop star, Selena Gomez.
The song is certified Platinum in the United States, for sales exceeding 1 million units, and Platinum in the UK, for over 600,000 units.
Though not an official remix, Busy Signal’s take has fans of both artists clamoring for the track’s official release.
According to one Twitter user, “Busy does justice to songs like these. That’s fire tbh. Rema should reach out.”
Another user suggested: “Better than the remix with Selena Gomez.”
Meanwhile, there were those who trumpeted Busy’s greatness as an artist, posting: “Busy is crazily underrated. The man is a multi-bag of talent.”
As to Rema’s admission that he was unaware of Busy Signal’s remix, one fan sought to simplify what could have easily been a legal matter, claiming: “Nigerians love Jamaicans. We are never suing Busy.”
Busy Signal has a proven track record of remixing hit songs, often improving them in the process.
Phil Collins’ 1985 No. 1-charting Billboard hit, One More Night was remixed by the Dancehall veteran, and remains a staple of in Lovers Rock circles in the genre.
Busy Signal, whose real name is Reanno Devon Gordon, has also covered and remixed Lionel Richie’s 1983 hit, Hello, Kenny Rogers’ The Gambler and Beres Hammond’s Tempted To Touch.