South African pop sensation and The sign Women in Music 2025 Impact Honoree, Tyla, is about to release its second album later this year.
In an exclusive interview with Message boardThe 23-year-old hitmaker promised fans a new sound that is “Different, yet Tyla.” She opened her development as an artist and remains involved in her roots and the mission to bring African music to the global scene.
A unstoppable ambition
Tyla burst on the music scene 2023 with its infectious smash-hit “water”, which rose to the top 10 of Billboard Hot 100. The song’s success highlighted the beginning of a unstoppable rise for Amapiano Trailblazer, culminated in her self-titled debut album Silent In March
While her ambitious career encountered a setback when a back injury forced her to interrupt her long -awaited debut Coachella set and the first international tour, Tyla’s determination never woke up. She made a triumphant return just a few months later, debuted at Met Gala in a fantastic sand-sculpted Balmain dress, which became the city’s call and delivered a show-stop performance of her song “Push 2 start” at Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. The swelling, reggae-infused track from the deluxe version of her debut album became her second threat 100 post, which proved her resilience and artistic versatility.
This year Tyla will join the icons such as André 3000 and Usher as a member of the Costume Institute Benefit Host Committee and celebrates black style at the prestigious event.
Honor African artistry
Tyla has been true of the challenges with genre marking or marking, especially when her music is often classified as “afrobeats.” She raised the debate in her latest interview with Billboard and emphasized the fluidity of genres.
“Genre is so fluid, so it has become difficult to categorize it. If people see it as the influence that the artist uses in his music gets his recognition, it will help more [with perceptions]. “
While Afrobeat affects her sound, Tyla made it clear that her music represents a wider spectrum of African artistry. She is committed to showing the wealth of wealth and driving Amapiano to mainstream recognition and expelling misconceptions that African artists are limited to a genre.
Makes history and loving home
Tyla did history in 2024 when “Water” won the first Grammy for best African music performance, which made her the youngest African artist who took home the coveted award. After that milestone, she secured victories at the Bet Awards, Billboard Music Awards and MTV Video Music Awards, which strengthened her status as a global icon.
Throughout her rise, Tyla has never lost her view of her roots. “The fact that what I have done has influenced people all over the world, especially African artists, is special,” She said, reflecting on her journey, as she remains determined to shed light on African music and bring her original South African Amapiano to the world’s largest scenes.
Recently, she performed massive heading shows in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Pretoria and described the experience as incredibly fulfilling.
“I haven’t really done much there since everything happened to” water “blasting. It was the biggest headlining show I have ever had. It was fun to have so much control over the stage, the dance, the lighting, the singing arrangements. It was really cool to create something from the ground and give home a whole show that I have never been able to give them.”
Evolution continues
When Tyla teases her new album, she suggests a deviation from her previous sound as she remains faith against her signature essence.
“I have changed a lot in a short time because I was forced to be with how fast I had to adapt to everything,” she said. “I don’t think it will be the same energy [as Tyla] At all, especially with what I’ve started to do. It is different, but also still Tyla. “
Tyla, who draws inspiration from artists such as Tems, Britney Spears, Whitney Houston and Aaliyah, continues to mix the influence with their unique voice and drive the boundaries of what African pop can be. With her long-awaited Coachella performance just around the corner, 2025 promises to be another groundbreaking year for Tyla as she solidifies her status as a trail blazer for African music on the world scene.
This full story is shown in March 22, 2025, the edition of Billboard.
