Tyla Wins Best Afrobeats At The VMAs

This is certainly Tyla’s season as the South African Superstar is busy picking up all the international awards, its no surprise for someone who has been releasing hit songs back to back, the latest came at the 2024 MTV Video Music Award (VMA) Held at the UBS Arena in Queens, New York.

The Awards had Megan Thee Stallion as the host and it marked another milestone for African music.

Tyla took home the award for Best Afrobeats with her chart-topping hit “Water.” She was in the category alongside heavyweights like Burna Boy, Tems, Davido, Ayra Starr, Lojay and Pheelz, tyla was also nominated for “Best New Artist,” and “Best RnB.”

The 22yr old turned heads in a bright yellow corset fringe top with matching miniskirt, fresh off the New York Fashion Week runway by Area.

After being presented with her award by Lil Nas X and Halle Bailey, Tyla who joked about the award being too heavy, expressed her gratitude to the organisers describing her win as “a big moment for Africa,” adding that the success of “Water” not only made a global impact but also proved that “African music can be pop music too.”

Tyla Wins Best Afrobeats Award

Her acceptance speech carried a powerful message for the global music industry further emphasizing the richness and the diverse nature of African music that needs to be explored.

Tyla’s win follows the success of Rema who took home the inaugural Best Afrobeats award last year for his hit song “Calm Down” featuring Selena Gomez.

Born and raised in Johannesburg South Africa, Tyla gained international recognition after the release of her 2023 single “Water”, which entered the top ten in multiple countries including her native South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States.

“Water” was the first song by a South African soloist to enter the US Billboard Hot 100 in 55 years and was awarded the inaugural Grammy Award for Best African Music Performance. The single preceded her self-titled debut album (2024), which was released to critical acclaim and moderate commercial success, entering the top 25 in multiple countries including the United States.
Tyla’s accolades include a Grammy Award, a MTV Video Music Award, two BET Awards, three Basadi in Music Awards and a Metro FM Music Award.

Congratulations to Tyla.