Singer Omi says he didn’t create the song ‘Cheerleader’ with any hopes of achieving commercial success.

Recorded at the Oufah Music Studios in Kingston in 2012, ‘Cheerleader’ would become the song he is best known for, two years later.

‘Cheerleader’ was written by Omi and Clifton ‘Specialist’ Dillon.

“I don’t write hit songs. I write songs. I do music from the heart, and I put myself into it. The fans, the people, they are the ones who made it a hit,” Omi told Observer Online.

On Friday, January 5th, ‘Cheerleader’ was certified 5x platinum in the United Kingdom by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for sales and streaming equivalents exceeding 3 million units.

‘Cheerleader’ was remixed by German producer Felix Jaehn in 2014 after it was snapped up by the American label Ultra Music. The song became a global hit before crossing over to the United States.

It topped charts in more than 18 countries, including the United Kingdom and the US (Billboard Hot 100, where it spent six non-consecutive weeks at #1). It was named Song of the Summer 2015 by Billboard Magazine.

Asked how he reacted to the global success of ‘Cheerleader’ at the time, Omi said, “My talent, my exposure was moving to another level, and I had to prepare for it.”

He explained how the idea for ‘Cheerleader’ came about.

“The idea for ‘Cheerleader’ wasn’t even supposed to be a song. It was an interlude, an acapella. ‘Specialist’ had the idea to make it into a song. The song was inspired by a relationship, a person who has been there from day one, the support system. And I’m sure a lot of people can relate to that,” Omi disclosed.

‘Cheerleader’ has been certified 3x platinum in the US and New Zealand, 6x platinum in Australia, platinum in Austria, 2x platinum in Belgium, 4x platinum in Spain, Germany, and Denmark, 7x platinum in Sweden and Italy, and Diamond in Canada, Mexico, and France.