Lemar was born in London to Nigerian (Igbo) parents, and was raised in Tottenham, London, listening to Soul Music and R&B. He used to sing at home with his brothers and sister, pretending to be The Jacksons. He was seventeen when he had his first concert at the Junior Jam at the Temple in Tottenham supporting Usher. He gave up an opportunity to study pharmacy at the Cardiff University to pursue a musical career. Lemar had some success supporting various artists such as Destiny's Child, Total, Uncle Sam and Usher Raymond on their UK club tours and after some years, managed to secure a recording contract with BMG. Following this, he released his debut single "Got Me Saying Ooh" in 2001. Unfortunately his record deal with BMG fell through in less than a year due to restructuring at the record label. He had to eventually take a job working as an accounts manager at NatWest in Enfield, north London.
Lemar's second single "Dance (With U)" reached number two on the UK Singles Chart in early 2003. His first album Dedicated was released late in 2003 with additional singles "50/50" and "Another Day" also achieving chart success in the UK. Lemar won a BRIT Award for "Best Urban Act" in 2004. Following the success of the album, he commenced his first headlining tour of the UK.
On the 12th of November 2004 Lemar guested on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge and performed a cover of U2's song "Vertigo". He has also performed for Prince Charles' Prince's Trust.
4 September 2006 saw Lemar return with his eighth single, entitled "It's Not That Easy", which became his sixth UK top ten hit. A week later his new album The Truth About Love was released, which saw guest appearances from Styles P from The L.O.X., Mica Paris and Joss Stone. The album became Lemar's highest charting album to date, peaking at number three on the UK Albums Chart.
Lemar's 4th studio album "The Reason" is set for release on November 24th 2008. While the first single of the album will be called "If She Knew" released on 10th November 2008. Also the video has been released too.
Lemar featured on Sway's first single "Saturday Night Hustle" from the album The Signature LP. Lemar's fourth studio album "The Reason" was released on 24 November 2008, entering the UK Albums Chart at No. 41. Lead single "If She Knew" was released on 10 November 2008, and peaked on the UK Singles Chart at No. 14.
Lemar performed his new single “The Way Love Goes” on the BBC1 show “So You Think You Can Dance” on Saturday 9th January. The single was released on Valentine’s Day. "The Way Love Goes" first entered the UK Singles Chart on 21, February 2010. The single has so far managed to peak at #8, his first Top 10 single since "It's Not That Easy" in 2006. It became Lemar's seventh Top 10 single and made the Top 10 without making the BBC Radio 1 or BBC Radio 2 playlists.
It was followed on March 8 by his much anticipated album, 'The Hits', which - as well as including 10 hit singles from his four studio albums - also features four new tracks. In addtiton to 'The Way Love Goes', these include a duet with Britain's chart-topping pop/R&B boy-band JLS on a re-recording of Lemar's own 2003 ballad 'What About Love'.
What If
Lemar Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah baby
Listen
Yeah whoa
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah (whoa)
Yeah ooh Baby
Everyday was the same old thing
Waking up out of bed
Put my shoes on,
Off to work
Just tryin' to get ahead
Jumped into my ride
To avoid the lines
Girl I took a different way
Corner of white hart lane
You were passing by
That's when I saw your face
Girl
What if I never got your name?
Where would I be right now
What if I would have changed my place
I would have been missing out
[Chorus]
On all we've been through
Oh, oh
What if I never met you?
Don't know wot I do
Oh, oh
What if I never met you?
Got so much to lose
Oh, oh
What if I never met you?
Baby I can't help thinking it
What if
Now looking back
I'm wondering
What if my alarm didn't ring?
It would be another girl
Riding next to me
For true love I'd still be searching
Scary to think
Just a second late
We would have never met
The time it was right
Feet was all outside
I'm so glad the lights were red
What if I never got your name?
Where would I be right now
What if I would have changed my place
I would have been missing out
[Chorus]
It's amazing
How it all happened
Feels like every move I made
Caused that chain reaction
Who would have thought
Cruisin' down that avenue
Would change my life forever
Lead me right next to you
What if I never got your name?
Where would I be right now
What if I would have changed my place
I would have been missing out
[Chorus: x2]
Oh
What if I never made
Oh, oh, oh, oh
What if I never
What if we never
Oh
What if
Lemar's "What If" is a beautiful love song that explores the idea of destiny and how the smallest of decisions can change the course of one's life. The song talks about what would have happened if the singer had missed a chance encounter with the love of his life or had taken a different route on his way to work. The lyrics are hauntingly beautiful and poignant as they make the listener reflect on their own lives and the decisions they've made. The song's chorus asks the question, "What if I never met you?", and expresses the fear of what life would have been like without their partner.
The song's instrumental is simple and understated, allowing Lemar's soulful voice to take center stage. The melody follows a steady beat that's easy to nod your head to, while Lemar's vocals soar with emotion. The song's bridge is particularly powerful, as Lemar sings about how every little decision he's made has led him to his true love. The song's final chorus is a beautiful crescendo that highlights the strength of their love.
Line by Line Meaning
Everyday was the same old thing
The singer's life was monotonous and routine
Waking up out of bed
The daily process of waking up and starting the day
Put my shoes on,
Getting dressed and ready to leave for work
Off to work
Heading out to the workplace for the day
Just tryin' to get ahead
Working hard to succeed in life
Jumped into my ride
Getting into the car to travel
To avoid the lines
Trying to avoid traffic
Girl I took a different way
The artist decided to take an alternate route
Corner of white hart lane
A specific location on the artist's route
You were passing by
The artist spots the love interest near them
That's when I saw your face
The singer noticed the love interest's physical appearance
What if I never got your name?
The artist ponders about what could've happened if they never got to know the love interest
Where would I be right now
The singer thinks about where they would be if they never met the love interest
What if I would have changed my place
The singer questions what would've happened if they took a different route or if they never left their old town
I would have been missing out
The singer realizes that meeting the love interest was a significant positive event in their life
On all we've been through
The artist reflects on the experiences they've had with the love interest
Don't know wot I do
The artist feels like they don't know what they'd do without the love interest
Got so much to lose
The singer now has too much to lose, regarding their relationship with the love interest
Baby I can't help thinking it
The singer is unable to stop their thoughts about the possibilities of never meeting the love interest
Now looking back
The artist takes a retrospective view of their situation
I'm wondering
The artist questions the 'what if' scenarios in their head
What if my alarm didn't ring?
The artist thinks of another possibility of missing out on meeting the love interest
It would be another girl
A hypothetical situation in which someone else would be in the love interest's place
Riding next to me
The artist imagines the love interest being with them during their car ride
For true love I'd still be searching
The singer contemplates the challenges of finding true love
Scary to think
The singer is frightened by the idea of missing out on meeting the love interest
Just a second late
The singer realizes that timing played a crucial role in meeting the love interest
We would have never met
The artist acknowledges that they wouldn't be in a relationship with the love interest if circumstances were different
The time it was right
The artist believes that the timing of meeting the love interest was perfect, in hindsight
Feet was all outside
The singer was outside their car, walking around the area
I'm so glad the lights were red
The singer is thankful that they had to stop at red lights, which resulted in them meeting the love interest
It's amazing
The artist is in awe of the whole situation
How it all happened
The artist reflects on how their relationship with the love interest came to be
Feels like every move I made
The artist thinks that every decision they ever made led up to meeting the love interest
Caused that chain reaction
The singer believes that their actions resulted in a chain reaction of events leading up to the encounter with the love interest
Who would have thought
The artist is surprised by the unlikeliness of the situation
Cruisin' down that avenue
The singer was driving along the road when they met the love interest
Would change my life forever
Meeting the love interest made a drastic impact on the singer's life
Lead me right next to you
The circumstances led the singer to meet the love interest in the end
Oh
An exclamation or expression of feeling
What if I never made
Another question about the possibility of not meeting the love interest
What if we never
The singer contemplates what would happen to their relationship if things were different
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Peermusic Publishing, RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC
Written by: EDWARD AVILA, CHARLES CALV, TOM FLETCHER, MIKE MAINO, RON SIVULICH, TRACY WHITE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind