Tinie Tempah reveals how he’d like to teach his 18-month-old daughter about her black heritage 

Tinie Tempah has given a rare insight into his life as a father to his 18-month-old daughter.

The British rapper, 31, welcomed his child at Christmastime in 2018 and shares her with wife Eve De Haan, an artist, whom he married in July 2019.

Talking to MailOnline this week, the MOBO Award winner spoke of his experience in lockdown, how his family have dealt with it, and how he’s using the time to research ways of educating his daughter about her black heritage. 

‘I’m big on animation,’ he said. ‘And I recently put out a tweet for my daughter. I was looking for TV shows that had a good representation of her as a little black girl.

‘I was looking through all these different programmes and I was really noticing that its difficult. When it comes to literature there’s loads more options available. But in terms of your average programme, there isn’t really that much representation of a young black girl, someone like her.

‘I put out a tweet and [was told about] JoJo & Gran Gran, which is amazing, its the first animation in England with an all black cast.

‘Then Laura [Henry Allain], the creator of it, she reached out and spoke to me about exploring that and creating something further and maybe collaborating on something new or different.’

Tinie – real name Patrick Chukwuemeka Okogwu – revealed he would like to go into acting, but said: ‘Working on something like [JoJo & Gran Gran] is as exciting to me as being in a movie. It’s the same thing, If I can do that, that would be amazing.’

The Pass Out singer – who is the son of Igbo parents from Nigeria – is tight-lipped about his family life, and has not revealed the name of his daughter.

He did go on to talk about experiencing the COVID-19 lockdown with a young child, admitting, for him, it ‘hasn’t been too bad’.

‘I feel for the people who have kids at school at the moment, that’s going to be a new kind of shock.

‘Imagine those kids who are used to interacting with all their friends, and all of a sudden they’re not able to see them. That must be crazy.

‘My daughter doesn’t know what’s going on. She’s only one and a half.’

He went on to reveal she isn’t a fan of PPE, saying: ‘She doesn’t like the face masks but we’ve got her a cool visor. We’re trying to convince her that it’s a really cool accessory!’

Tinie’s interest in animation might explain his latest collaboration with Burger King, which ties in with the release of his new single, Whoppa.

Burger King and Tinie have turned the rapper into a cartoon version of himself and unveiled the world’s first private AR concert on a burger – namely, the food brand’s iconic Whopper.

For a limited time, Burger King customers will be able to scan a QR code on their Whopper burger, which will generate a miniature of Tinie, performing Whoppa, with the iconic signature burger as his stage.

This hyper-realistic, digital Tinie will belt out the hit in an intimate 360 performance and is pegged as the smallest gig ever. It will, of course, be the closest many will have come to a live performance since March when all festivals and shows were inevitably cancelled.

‘When we made this song, the vibe was all about summer time and bringing that Latin heat and energy to the UK music scene – not so much about burgers!’ Tinie said. ‘But when Burger King reached out on Twitter, we immediately knew we just had to collaborate.

‘Of all the ways I’d be launching a single in 2020, I couldn’t have predicted that it would be through a performance on top of a flame-grilled Whopper!’

On the track, Latina superstars Farina, from Colombia, and Sofia Reyes from Mexico, add their sound, with the video shot in Mexico City not long before the pandemic hit.

‘I actually made the record a few years ago and had been promo-ing it during my residency in Ibiza,’ Tinie said. ‘Just before lockdown we shot the video in Mexico and it really just reminds you of a sweeter, simpler time.

‘It’s about being around each other without social distancing. Nations coming together – me, the Brit, with Sofia and Farina from Mexico and Columbia.

‘Mexico City is an interesting place too. It’s the most populated major city in the world. Something like 25 million people. It was so nice to experience the Mexican culture. I love the colours of Mexico.’ 

Of lockdown in general, he mused: ‘I try not to focus on the things I cant control.

‘As an artist, there is nothing better than being in front of fans, but I have had to use the time to focus on what I can do to still do that in other ways. I can just make music, engage with fans and followers other artists virtually. 

‘Hopefully with this Whopper campaign it’s another way to meet and greet my fans and make them smile.’

Tinie admits that lockdown as been good for him ‘musically’ and has enjoyed the chance to slow down a bit. ‘The world was moving too fast anyway,’ he said. 

His gigs – as well as plans to release a new album – have certainly been marred, however; Tinie’s residency at Ushuaïa Ibiza was scheduled to move to Malta this summer, which looks now to be shifted back to 2021.

‘You’ve got to stay positive though,’ he insisted. ‘Everything has had to be postponed and, who knows, we could still be in this situation next year.

 

‘But I have used lockdown to gear up music and I plan to continue releasing singles. The album will be released next year – well, it could be this year – but I don’t really feel motivated to market stuff. I am just happy doing TikToks and talking to my fans.’

Tinie worries about other artists he works with and wants to ‘make sure they don’t feel the effects’ of the pandemic too much.

‘That’s they stuff we can control. I really feel for artists right now. Most of them are there to do it for the art – the monetary gain is like the secondary thing. Most don’t think about the money but at the moment it is very difficult for the self-employed.

‘Obviously there are so many people who have been affected in a way worse way. We just need to all show solidarity. That’s all we can do.’

Tinie will be performing on all Whopper burgers sold across the UK from July 28 and into August.