I am Not An Afrobeats Artist. I Represent Amapiano – Tyla Educates The World On African Music Diversity (video)
Source: Africa Publicity
South African musician, Tyla, has used her first MTV Video Music Award acceptance speech to educate the world about the diversity of African music, addressing the tendency to group all African artists under the Afrobeats genre.
Expressing her gratitude for the award, Tyla, the ‘Water’ hitmaker, clarified the distinction between her song and the Afrobeats category in which it was awarded.
She said during the awards ceremony on Wednesday night, September 11, 2024 that “The global impact that ‘Water’ has had on the world just proves that African music can be pop music too. This is so special but bittersweet because I know there is a tendency to group all African artists under Afrobeats.”
She added “Even though Afrobeats has run things and has opened so many doors for us, African music is so diverse. It is more than just Afrobeats.”
According to Tyla, “I come from South Africa. I represent Amapiano. I represent my culture.”
Other artists nominated also in the Afrobeats category with Tyla, were: Burna Boy, Giveon (with Ayra Star, Chris Brown (with Davido), Lojay, Tems, and Usher (with Pheelz.
Watch Tyla’s acceptance speech below:
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