Lemar

Lemar Obika is a London-born British singer, songwriter and vocal producer working in contemporary R&B, neo soul and soul. Born in 1978, he grows up in Tottenham, London, in a family of Nigerian Igbo heritage, and he develops an early interest in soul and R&B. He sings at home with his brothers and sister, often pretending to be The Jacksons.

Early life and first performances

Lemar gives his first concert at the Junior Jam at the Temple in Tottenham, where he supports Usher, when he is seventeen. He later gives up an offer to study pharmacy at Cardiff University in order to pursue music. Before establishing himself as a recording artist, he also works as an accounts manager at NatWest in Enfield, north London.

Recording career

He secures a recording contract with BMG after supporting a number of artists on UK club tours, including Destiny's Child, Total, Uncle Sam and Usher Raymond. His debut single, Got Me Saying Ooh, is released in 2001, but his deal with BMG ends within a year after restructuring at the label.

Lemar breaks through with Dance (With U), which reaches number two on the UK Singles Chart in early 2003. His debut album, Dedicated, follows later that year and also produces the singles 50/50 and Another Day, both of which chart in the UK. He wins a BRIT Award for Best Urban Act in 2004 and begins his first UK headlining tour after the album’s success.

Subsequent releases and collaborations

In 2004 he appears on BBC Radio 1’s Live Lounge, where he performs a cover of U2’s Vertigo. He also performs for Prince Charles’ Prince’s Trust. His single It’s Not That Easy is released in September 2006 and becomes his sixth UK top ten hit. It is followed by the album The Truth About Love, which features guest appearances from Styles P of The L.O.X., Mica Paris and Joss Stone and reaches number three on the UK Albums Chart, his highest-charting album.

His fourth studio album, The Reason, is released in 2008 and enters the UK Albums Chart at number 41. Its lead single, If She Knew, reaches number 14 on the UK Singles Chart. He later performs The Way Love Goes on BBC1’s So You Think You Can Dance; the song reaches number eight in the UK and becomes his seventh top ten single.

Later work

Lemar also features on Sway’s single Saturday Night Hustle from The Signature LP. His compilation The Hits follows, collecting ten hit singles from his first four studio albums and adding four new tracks, including a duet with JLS on a new version of his 2003 song What About Love.