Baby (Is It a Crime)
by Rema

Album: released as a single (2025)
Charted: 53
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • In "Baby (Is It a Crime)" Rema oscillates between poetic seduction and streetwise bravado, singing in both Nigerian pidgin and Yoruba. One moment, he's all deep yearning; the next, he's casually name-dropping Birkin, because nothing says romance like a high-end Birkin bag.
  • When asked about the track by BBC Radio 1's Jack Saunders, Rema explained, "It's all about good vibes. It's all about love. I think it's important to keep the love vibration going on. There's so much happening in the world, and we just need someone who's always there with us."
  • Rema said he wrote the song alone in a room in Kenya – it was just him and a bottle of red wine. He wanted to sing about his experiences, so the track reflects on "the same collective scenario that every guy goes through, walking up to a girl, asking the girl out, trying to vibe with a girl, stuff like that."
  • The intro samples the chorus of Sade's 1985 confessional hit "Is It A Crime?," with bits of the sample heard throughout the song.
  • Producer P.Priime created the pulsating Afrobeat rhythm. His other credits include "Anoti" from Wizkid's Grammy-nominated album Made in Lagos and "Alone" recorded by Burna Boy for the soundtrack of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
  • The song's music video was directed by Salomé Gomis-Trezise and shot in London in January 2025.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Al Kooper

Al KooperSongwriter Interviews

Kooper produced Lynyrd Skynyrd, played with Dylan and the Stones, and formed BS&T.

Oliver Leiber

Oliver LeiberSongwriter Interviews

Oliver Leiber talks about writing and producing hits for Paula Abdul, and explains his complicated relationship with his father, the songwriter Jerry Leiber.

Harry Shearer

Harry ShearerSongwriter Interviews

Harry is Derek Smalls in Spinal Tap, Mark Shubb in The Folksmen, and Mr. Burns on The Simpsons.

Don Dokken

Don DokkenSongwriter Interviews

Dokken frontman Don Dokken explains what broke up the band at the height of their success in the late '80s, and talks about the botched surgery that paralyzed his right arm.

Gene Simmons of Kiss

Gene Simmons of KissSongwriter Interviews

The Kiss rocker covers a lot of ground in this interview, including why there are no Kiss collaborations, and why the Rock Hall has "become a sham."

Meshell Ndegeocello

Meshell NdegeocelloSongwriter Interviews

Meshell Ndegeocello talks about recording "Wild Night" with John Mellencamp, and explains why she shied away from the spotlight.