SOUTH AFRICAN SINGER TYLA WINS GRAMMY AWARD

South African singer Tyla has won a Grammy Award for the Best African Music Performance for Water.

Although coming up against stiff competition, including massive Afrobeats stars Burna Boy, Asake and Davido, Tyla’s hit song Water proved undeniable for Grammy voters. “What the heck?!” she declared once on stage. “This is crazy, I never thought I’d say I won a GRAMMY at 22 years old.“

The amapiano-based pop song entered the Billboard Hot 100 last year, the first for an South African solo artist since Hugh Masekala in 1968. It later peaked at No. 7, making her the highest-charting African female solo musician in Billboard history. The song also went to No. 1 on the Billboard U.S. Afrobeats songs and Hip-Hop/R&B charts. 

Tyla shouted out her family during her acceptance speech, saying “I know my mother’s crying somewhere in here.” Tyla makes history as the first-ever Best African Music performance winner. The category was created in order for the Academy to honour music from the continent, according to Academy President Harvey Mason Jr. “I’d love to see us be able to honour even more music from Africa and other areas of the world,” Mason said in an interview with Grammy.com.