Rema, born Divine Ikubor, has become the first Afrobeats singer to perform at a Ballon d'Or ceremony.

The 2023 Ballon d'Or took place on Monday, October 30, in Paris, France, and saw Argentina's Lionel Messi clinching his eighth honour.

In an all-black outfit, with a neck bling, and flanked by two female dancers, Nigeria's Rema crooned his international megahit Calm Down. His audience at the 2,500-capacity Theatre du Chatelet, were visibly thrilled as many of them swayed and clapped in excitement. 

During the three-minute performance, Rema, with smiles and light dancing, came down from the stage and shook the hands of some of his audience members, including footballers like Brazillian star Vinicius Junior, French star Kylian Mbappe and Norwegian star Erling Haaland. 

Watch here:

Calm Down, track 4 on the Rave and Rose album of 2022, has more remix with Selena Gomez which won the collaborators the very first Best Afrobeats Award at the MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) 2023.

Meanwhile, every year, French magazine France Football and FIFA present the Ballon d'Or (Golden Ball) award to a footballer for his outstanding performance for the year under review.