Omi is one of the ten most streamed reggae artist on Pandora and his single Hula Hoop just hit 100 million streams on YouTube. The singer returned to to instagram to celebrate the milestone.
He posted, “#OMIArmy – we’ve hit over 100 MILLION views of the “Hula Hoop” music video! Are you still jammin’ along? #HulaHoop”
Hula Hoop was released on 28 August 2015 as the second single from his debut studio album Me 4 U . It was was written by Omi as well as writers, Karl Wolf, Jenson Vaughan, Matt James and Frank Buelles.
The song is currently double platinum in Canada.
His other more successful single Cheerleader, was a massive worldwide hit with a remixed version by German DJ Felix Jaehn. He was signed to Ultra Music, a division of Sony Music, but he says that deal is now done.
With over 18 million records sold, the singer has been largely missing from the international scene. World Music Views caught up with Omi for an exclusive interview about his whereabouts and his plans for music in the future.
What has the music scene looked like for OMI since Hula Hoop? Are you seeing any changes?
The music scene since Hula Hoop for me at one point seem like it was anyone’s game really, the new trends, artistes/producers experimenting with different sounds and merging genres has added so many other components to music and the business itself.
Has the pandemic affected your creative process?
I think everyone can attest to the fact that since the pandemic there has been a serious demand for entertainment, especially with the world being basically grounded. While it had a negative impact on tours and the rate in which many were forced to put out content, it did have its positives. For one it afforded us the time to reinvent ourselves, discover hidden capabilities and connect more with the people even though it’s virtually.
You hardly do events and parties, is that deliberate?
Well, when it comes to the business I guess you have to be strategic. Remaining scarce is good to build up the demand for appearances.
You took Cheerleader across the world, since then many Jamaican artists have been trying to do the same, what advice do you have for artists who want to go pop?
I think the only advice I would give really is to stick to what you do very well, and try to improve upon it, because that journey for all of us is different you just have to make sure you’re ready when your time come to shine.
Are you still signed to a record label?
No I’m not currently signed to a major label.
On the heels of 100m streams for Hula Hoop and over a billion for Cheerleader, should your fans expect new music?
The Omi army should definitely look out for new music.
