Tyla acknowledges that she is still acclimating to public scrutiny.
In an interview with the British radio station KISS XTRA, the singer talked candidly about handling the attention and views around everything she does. Around 8:50, she said, “For a while, I just felt like, damn, relax.” “Because I’m not sure.” It was simply becoming irritating.
”I kind of had to get used to people just being interested and embrace it now, but at the time, I was like, ‘Y’all gonna analyze every little thing I do?’” she added. “For a while, I felt weird about it, but then I just realized that you kind of have to do what you want, do it the way you want, and everyone’s going to have their own take on it, their own opinion on it, and that’s okay.”
Throughout her career, Tyla has had to contend with a great deal of controversy. Before she rose to fame with her breakthrough single, “Water,” it began with a 2020 TikTok video in which she revealed that she self-identifies as a “Coloured South African” because she “comes from a lot of different cultures.”
When asked what she meant by that in a 2024 Breakfast Club interview, Tyla sidestepped the subject and then addressed her identity on X. She wrote, “I don’t know where that came from, but I’ve never denied my Blackness.” “My ancestry includes Black/Zulu, Irish, Mauritian/Indian, and colored people.”
When Tyla received the Best Afrobeats Video prize at the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards, she chose not to hold up the “Moon Person” statue since it was too heavy for her, which led to yet another widely scrutinized event.
After receiving the trophy from presenters Lil Nas X and Halle Bailey, Tyla remarked, “Oh my gosh. You guys know me and holding awards. I am not strong enough,” causing Lil Nas X to grab the award for her after Bailey opted not to take it.
Social media users joked that Halle might be disparaging Tyla because of the incident, but Tyla quickly took to X to dispel the claims. She wrote, “You guys make everything weird.” “I didn’t ask my girlfriend, Halle. I won a VMAAAA, STFU. We’re just girls.
Bailey reshared Tyla’s message with her own comment, cosigning it. She wrote, “Exactly,” using two heart emojis. “Congrats, love you, babes.”
Tyla previously shared her thoughts about adjusting to fame in an interview with The Los Angeles Times. “It’s been scary, because not only did my life completely change, I’m in a different country and so many things are different culturally that I’m still trying to navigate,” she said. “I’m learning in front of the world. When I make mistakes, it’s going to be a thing that everyone sees, and some people won’t ever forgive. I didn’t expect it to be this hard.”
