OMI cartwheels to top of charts with Cheerleader

Jamaican singer OMI may seem like an overnight success, but his chart-topping summer hit, Cheerleader, has been years in the making.

He started working on the reggae-pop song seven years ago. He released the track in 2012 under the Jamaican label, Oufah, but it was a 2014 remix of the song, by German DJ Felix Jaehn, that gave the tune a new flavour and new life.

The upbeat ode to a supportive girlfriend is spending its second week at No1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart.

“It wasn’t supposed to be a song,” OMI said. “It was supposed to be like an interlude on the album.” That interlude has so far sold 1.4 million copies and has 108.9 million on-demand streams, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

“Monumental is the word I can think of right now,” he says. “For an artist who is from a little island in the Caribbean, it means a lot. It’s a very proud moment.”

The 28-year-old, born Omar Samuel Pasley, is adjusting to his newfound fame in the United States, recently holding up airport security lines as the guards clamoured to take photos with him.

“Fan reactions are crazy sometimes. You know, like, ‘OMI, I love you! OMI, my lover!”’ he says.

Not to be derailed, he’s staying focused on his next single, due out this month, and first album, due out in the autumn on Columbia Records.

“Fame is a distraction sometimes,” he says. “You know, it’s a distraction if you let it. So it’s very important to stay focused, stay very connected to your roots.”

The self-proclaimed “country boy” from the rural Jamaican parish of Clarendon, credits his small-town upbringing for keeping him grounded as his career skyrockets.

“We’ve seen many heroes from Jamaica, you know, and to be put in that class or to be looked upon on that level is overwhelming,” he says. “It’s pretty big shoes to fill, you know. I’m a size eight, but I’ll try my best.”

artslife@thenational.ae