By Rorisang Modiba
Sexy and talented South African musician Tyla, who created a worldwide sensation with her hit song Water, is becoming more famous by the day.
But the singing sensation said that despite having 4.3-million Instagram followers (known as the Tygers), she is still adjusting to her sudden fame.
In an interview with the Guardian, the 22-year-old spoke about her recent Grammy win and performance on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.
After Water entered the top 10 in the charts of 30 countries, Tyla said she feels that she’s paving the way for South Africa’s creative music scene.
“More people are starting to know about South Africa now,” she said.
“They want to hear me say ‘Yoh!’ and they love the dancing.”
She mentioned how her music blends R&B, pop and amapiano, which mixes elements of house, kwaito, Zulu rhythms and jazz.
Tyla became the first South African solo artist on the Billboard Hot 100 in 55 years.
“With amapiano, this is the first time we have a genre associated with South Africa that is now global. It’s such a beautiful thing because it’s beneficial to the creators but also the nation as a whole,” she said.
Born Tyla Laura Seethal in 2002 in Johannesburg, Tyla grew up admiring artists like Aaliyah, Rihanna and Adele.
Determined to pursue a singing career she began sharing her performances online.
“I tried to post whenever I could. On every singing app, every competition app, every social media app,” she said.
Tyla is happy to take the lead in promoting South African sounds to the world.
“This is very much the beginning of the journey. We are now living what we’ve been speaking about for years. I’m just excited for everything that is still to come,” she said.
Pictured above: Tyla.
Image source: Instagram
