South African pop sensation Tyla has addressed the recent online criticism that followed her lighthearted moment with rapper Lil Nas X and actor Halle Bailey during the MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs).
Tyla, 22, made history as the first South African to win a VMA, securing the Best Afrobeats award for her hit song Water at the prestigious event held at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York.
During her acceptance speech, Tyla joked about the award’s weight, playfully asking Lil Nas X to hold the trophy for her. “You guys know me and holding awards, yoh hai. I’m not strong enough,” she quipped, before turning to the Old Town Road artist and asking, “Please, please, are you able to hold for me? Yes, thank you, I’m sorry.” Lil Nas X kindly stepped forward, taking the ‘moonman’ statue from Tyla as she continued her speech.
However, this lighthearted exchange sparked backlash on social media. YouTuber Armon Wiggins took to X (formerly Twitter) to criticize the singer, stating, “Hey, I don’t think I like TYLA’s personality. I think someone needs to check her cus she doesn’t understand American Culture AT ALL… she almost gives off entitled or uppity African, idk how to explain it but it’s very off-putting.”
In response to the backlash, Tyla briefly changed her bio on X to “Entitled uppity African” and later addressed the situation with a post: “Y’all make everything weird… I was not asking my girl Halle… We just girls, STFU I WON A VMAAAA [sic].” Halle Bailey supported Tyla, responding to her with a tweet that read, “Exactly, love u, babes, congrats.”
Despite the online criticism, Tyla’s historic win remains a significant milestone, marking her as a trailblazer for South African artists on the global stage.
