Tyla Calls Best Afrobeats VMAs Win "Bittersweet" Because of the "Tendency to Group All African Artists Under" the Genre

South African star Tyla has had a major year since the viral release of her hit "Water"—and she couldn't be more proud to bring African music across the globe.

At the 2024 MTV VMAs on Wednesday, September 11, the singer won the Best Afrobeats award for "Water." While accepting the Moonperson, she took the opportunity to share how proud she is to represent her home continent, as well as the "tendency to group all African artists under Afrobeats."

After taking the stage, she sweetly asked the presenters to hold onto her award, joking, "I'm not strong enough," and then went into her thoughtful speech. "The global impact that 'Water' has had on the world just proves that African music can be pop music too," she began.

"This is just so special, but also bittersweet because I know there's a tendency to group all African artists under Afrobeats," Tyla continued. "It's a thing, and even though Afrobeats has run things and has opened so many doors for us, African music is so diverse. It's more than just Afrobeats."

The 22-year-old musician then spoke about how she specifically makes amapiano music, or a South African genre that fuses house, jazz, and the '90s-originated sound known as kwaito. "I come from South Africa. I represent amapiano, I represent my culture," she said, before going on to shout out some of her peers and others nominated in the Afrobeats category. "Africa to the world," she added.

Others in the Best Afrobeats category included Ayra Starr featuring Giveon for "Last Heartbreak Song," Burna Boy for "City Boys," Chris Brown featuring Davido and Lojay for "Sensational," Tems for "Love Me JeJe," and Usher for "Pheelz."

Tyla was among this year's first-time nominees. Aside from Best Afrobeats, she's also up for the coveted Best New Artist award, as well as Best R&B for "Water."

The hitmaker released her self-titled debut studio album in March to critical acclaim.