2024 MTV VMAs: Tyla challenges afrobeats dominance, highlights African music diversity

South African singer Tyla has ignited a controversy in the African music scene after distancing herself from the Afrobeats genre during her acceptance speech at the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs). 

Tyla, who won the Best Afrobeats Award at the event held at the UBS Arena in Elmont, New York, expressed mixed emotions about the win.

In her speech, she called the recognition “so special but also bittersweet,” clarifying that she primarily represents ‘Amapiano’, not Afrobeats.

Tyla emphasized that “African music is so diverse” and goes beyond just Afrobeats, highlighting the rich variety within the continent’s musical landscape.

This comment has sparked discussions about the place of different African genres on the global stage.

“Thank you. MTV, my team, God, everyone, this is such a big moment for Africa and African music. The global impact that “Water” has had on the world proves African music can also be pop music. This is so special but also bittersweet, because I know there’s a tendency to group African artists under Afrobeats. It’s a thing and though Afrobeats has run things and has opened many doors for us, African music is so diverse, it’s more than just Afrobeats. I come from South Africa. I represent amapiano. I represent my culture. I want to shout out to all the Afrobeats artists in this category with me.”

Her speech on the night, however, has been criticized by popular OAP, Do2dtun,who accused the singer of not aligning with her musical identity “Aunty @tyla a.k.a am not Afrobeats, I am Amapiano. We have heard you but your song ‘Water’ is not Amapiano either. If you thought you were categorized in the wrong category, you should have given the award back or denounced the nomination”, Do2dtun wrote. But is it possible for Tyla to separate herself from being an Afrobeats singer? Your guess is as good as mine. The 22-year-old singer won the award for her major hit “Water” The music video has more than 230 million views on YouTube and almost 800 million streams on Spotify.