South African singer Tyla, who became a global name with her hit single “Water,” recently addressed a viral video of her in Brazil. The video, filmed at an after-party, showed a distressing scene where Tyla appeared to have collapsed and was being carried by a bodyguard. Her alleged boyfriend, Geo, was in the car where she was taken.
Seemingly in her quest to address the situation, Tyla posted a picture of herself on X. The photo was carefully staged to be strikingly similar to a well-known image of Beyoncé. In the 2006 photo, Beyoncé also appeared drunk and was being helped by her partner, Jay-Z.
Tyla’s career now faces a complicated landscape. The recent video and her response did not occur in a vacuum. She has already been dealing with significant backlash in the United States over her racial identity.
Tyla identifies as “Colored,” a term that has a specific meaning in South Africa for people of mixed race. In the United States, however, the word is widely considered an offensive slur with a painful history tied to the Jim Crow era. This has created a deep cultural divide. Many Black Americans feel Tyla has been unwilling to acknowledge the term’s different meanings. This has resulted in a loss of support from a key audience.
The backlash had a clear impact on her music. Tyla’s new EP had underwhelming sales in the U.S., selling fewer than 4,000 units in its first week. This low number is seen as a direct consequence of the controversy. This situation shows the importance of cultural sensitivity for artists with a global reach.
