Afro-soul star Tems has quietly released a surprise EP titled Love Is a Kingdom, marking a mature turn in her ever-evolving sound and lyricism. The unexpected drop confirms that Tems continues to operate on her own creative timeline, keeping her audience engaged while charting her own path.
The EP spans six tracks and feels less like a commercial rush and more like a meditative space for reflection, longing, and emotional sovereignty. Its sonic palette is rich yet restrained: warm synth textures, intimate percussion, and Tems’s signature voice carries each song with emotional clarity. There’s a sense throughout that she’s exploring her inner world in a way that’s deeply personal but also universally resonant.
Lyrically, Love Is a Kingdom navigates themes of power, devotion, and self-possession. Tracks such as “Kingdom” and “Ritual” evoke the metaphor of a sovereign rule, not over others, but over one’s own emotions and relationships. Tems sings about love not as a surrender, but as a realm she inhabits on her own terms. In moments, she sounds exalted (“I reign in this heart / I build all these walls”), but she also allows vulnerability (“I still pray that I stay / when the night has its sway”).
As Love Is a Kingdom continues to circulate, this surprise EP proves again that Tems is as much a curator of her creative identity as she is a powerhouse vocalist.
