Tyla (album)

Tyla is the debut studio album by South African singer Tyla. It was released on 22 March 2024 through Fax and Epic Records. Capitalizing on her international breakthrough with its lead single "Water", the album includes guest appearances from Kelvin Momo, Tems, Gunna, Skillibeng, Becky G, and Travis Scott. Tyla blends elements of amapiano, pop, afrobeats, and contemporary R&B, and its lyrical themes include empowerment and relationships.

Recording sessions for the album took place in seven countries over two-and-a-half years. Tyla and her collaborators Ari PenSmith, Mocha Bands, Believve, and Sammy SoSo led production and songwriting. Tyla was supported by four singles: "Water", which peaked at number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and received multi-platinum certificates in many countries, "Truth or Dare", "Art", and "Jump". The Tyla Tour was announced, some dates of which were cancelled due to injuries.

Upon its release, Tyla was met with critical acclaim. Many critics praised Tyla's versatility for including multiple music genres. The album debuted at number 24 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart, and within the top 20 of album charts in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Norway, New Zealand, and Switzerland.

Background and release
Shortly after completing high school in 2019, Tyla self-released her debut single "Getting Late" featuring Kooldrink, which gained popularity in South Africa and piqued the interest of executives at Epic Records. In 2021, Tyla signed a recording contract with Epic and left South Africa for the first time to attend a writing camp in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, where the label had organized a songwriting camp for her. Over the following two-and-a-half years, Tyla attended recording sessions in Ghana, Nigeria, Tanzania, South Africa, Jamaica, the United Kingdom, and the United States to develop formal studio-recording experience, and to write and record her debut album. During this time, Tyla met Ari PenSmith, Mocha Bands, Believve, and Sammy SoSo, who became her collaborators and did most of the production and songwriting on Tyla.

In October 2023, Tyla told Capital Xtra she had been recording Tyla for over two years and that it would mostly be "popiano", a blend of amapiano and pop music. Part of Tyla was recorded in Portland, Jamaica. Tyla announced Tyla's release via social media on 30 November 2023. In December 2023, before the album's release, Tyla described it as an "experimental album". Tyla was originally scheduled for release on 1 March 2024, she had extended the album-submission date to work with the Nigerian singer Tems on the song "No.1", and the album was released on 22 March that year through Fax Records and Epic Records.

Composition and lyrics
Tyla is an amapiano, pop, and R&B record that contains elements of afrobeats; a sound Tyla calls "popiano". The 41-second-long opening track "Intro", a recording that plays in the background while people converse, was produced by South African record producer Kelvin Momo. In an interview with Apple Music, Tyla stated that she wanted to kickstart with a raw and proudly South African sound.

"Safer" features soothing melodies and a syncopated log drum with chants as an expansion. "Water" is a pop and R&B infused amapiano song. In "Water", Tyla sings about a woman's longing to feel a squirting climax. "Truth or Dare", the fourth song on the album, has been described as a slab of afrobeats and amapiano by Joshua Minsoo Kim of Resident Advisor. In the chorus, Tyla sings about remembering when her then-lover would mistreat her and challenges him to catch up. The seventh song on the album, "Butterflies", is a fusion of hip hop, pop, and R&B that is similar to the musical style of Ariana Grande.

"On and On" blends old-school R&B, amapiano, and pop. On "Jump", Tyla sings: "they ain't never had a pretty girl from Jo'burg, see me now and that's what they prefer". It is the only trap-infused song on the album, and includes raw vocals from Gunna and Skillibeng. "Jump" is a fusion of afrobeats, dancehall, and hip hop with echoing log drums and percussion that define the amapiano genre. "Jump" opens with an intro by Skillibeng, who compliments Tyla and calls her "an original gyal". Tyla sings the first verse with braggadocio and the single-syllable chorus in a rap-sung cadence. In the second verse, Gunna promises to fulfil Tyla's desires and buy her jewellery. The song ends with an outro by Skillibeng. "Art", the tenth song on the album, has been described as the most-pleasantly erotic song Tyla has released since "Water". It is followed by "On My Body", a deep house-influenced recording whose partially Spanish-language are sung by Becky G. The thirteenth song on the album "To Last" is a fusion of R&B and amapiano that features Tyla's smooth, whispered vocals and synths with an aspect of sadness as she sings: "You never gave us a chance, it’s like you never wanted us to last".

Promotion
To promote Tyla, on 5 December 2023, Tyla announced the Tyla Tour, her debut concert tout, which was scheduled to begin on 21 March 2024 in Oslo and conclude on 28 May 2024 in Minneapolis. The North American leg of the tour was cancelled due to an injury Tyla suffered before the tour began, and the UK-and-European leg of the tour was postponed. Soon after the album's release, Tyla performed pop-up shows in London and Johannesburg to promote the record.

Live performances


Tyla first performed "Water" in June 2023 at Afro Nation Portugal. Tyla also performed "Water" on 2 August and "To Last" on 6 September 2023 for Vevo's program "DSCVR". In October the same year, Tyla made her global television debut performing "Water" on The Bianca Show in Sweden, and she performed the same song on the US television show The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon later that month. On 30 November 2023, she performed "On and On" on the German music-performance platform ColorsxStudios. Tyla performed an unreleased remix version of "Water" with South African DJ-and-record producer Black Coffee at a nightclub in Sandton on 6 December. She performed a medley of "Water" and "Truth or Dare" on the season 24 finale of the US television series The Voice, which aired on NBC on 18 December. She also performed a medley of "On and On", "Truth or Dare", and "Water" in Times Square during the 2024 television special Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve. On 9 April 2024, Tyla made her first appearance on the US late-night talk show The Late Show With Stephen Colbert and performed "Art" for the first time.

Singles
On 4 November 2022, Tyla returned from a brief hiatus to release "To Last" as a standalone single that was later included on Tyla. The album's lead single "Water" was released on 28 July 2023. It reached number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and peaked within the top 10s of multiple countries. The song earned Tyla the inaugural Grammy Award for Best African Music Performance at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards. In 2024, "Water" was nominated for several awards, including the Brit Award for International Song, and the Metro FM Music Award for Song of the Year. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified "Water" double-platinum in the United States and Pro-Música Brasil certified it diamond in Brazil. Two remix versions of "Water", one featuring the American rapper Travis Scott and the other featuring the DJ Marshmello, were released on 17 November 2023.

"Truth or Dare" was serviced to rhythmic contemporary radio stations on 13 February 2024. It peaked at number one on the UK Afrobeats Singles Chart. It also peaked at number 4 on Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart, at number 17 on the Rhythmic chart, number three on the Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart, and at number four on the World Digital Song Sales chart.

A live performance of "On and On" on the German music-performance platform ColorsxStudios was released on YouTube and other digital-streaming platforms a day before the release of the digital Extended Play (EP) Tyla. The promotional single peaked at number 16 on the UK Afrobeats Singles Chart and at number 10 on the Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs.

"Art", which was released on the same day as Tyla, was accompanied by a music video. The song peaked at number four on the  Billboard US Afrobeats chart and at number two on the UK Afrobeats chart. A teaser video, which was shared on Tyla's social-media accounts on 13 March 2024, depicts Tyla and Lisa of Blackpink previewing the song. It debuted at number 18 on the New Zealand Hot Singles chart. On 12 April 2024, "Art" was sent to Italian radio as a single.

"Jump", which includes guest vocals from American rapper Gunna and Jamaican DJ-and-rapper Skillibeng, was sent to rhythmic contemporary radio on 14 May 2024, and to radio airplay in Italy on 7 June 2024. "Jump" peaked at number 18 on The Official South African Charts, at number 87 on the Canadian Hot 100, at number 22 on the Official New Zealand Music Chart, number 38 on the UK Official Singles chart, and at number three on the US Afrobeats chart. On 2 July 2024, Music Canada certified "Jump" gold in Canada.

Critical reception
Tyla received a score of 84 out of 100 on review aggregator Metacritic based on nine critics' reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". Several contemporary music critics praised Tyla's ability to fuse a variety of musical styles such as afrobeats, amapiano, pop, and R&B while remaining "true to her roots".

Writing for African Folder, Bomi Anifowose said the album's distinction "reflects the meticulous effort poured into its crafting". He noted Tyla "refused to settle for mediocrity" and that she "poured her heart and energy" into each aspect of the album. Concluding the review, Anifowose stated: "there is no skippable song" on the album and called it "one of the most groundbreaking debuts" from an African pop star. Beats Per Minute's Lucas Martins complimented the album's versatility, noting it "presents restrained yet club-ready songs" that make for the "perfect vibe". Concluding his review, Martins wrote the "expertly crafted record"'s authentic sound will allow Tyla to become a star. Writing for Clash, Robin Murray said Tyla "opens with a flurry of highlights" and that "she’s able to remain true to her roots". He also said the album "taps into the emerging energies of spring" and described it as "one of 2024’s most insistent projects".

According to Tai Saint-Louis of HipHopDX, the album proves Tyla has the potential to become "one of the genre-defining stars of her generation", saying "she comes off as organically comfortable". i's Ed Power wrote Tyla stays on "the front foot" on an album where "forward motion is a recurring metaphor". Writing for The Line of Best Fit, Amaya Lim said Tylas's unique selling point is that "she has all the trappings of a real Popstar". Lim noted amapiano, afrobeats, pop and R&B are "expertly blended into every song", which results in "a record that is above all cohesive". Lim also said despite the "little emotional or energetic dynamism" on the album, it is "club-ready, danceable and infectious", attracting the masses. According to Miya Madzada of The Native, Tyla "remained genuine and authentic to herself" throughout the album and said "her charismatic personality shines out". Madzada stated Tyla "engraves her artistic" ambitions. Kayleigh Watson of NME said Tyla proves her status as "South Africa's brightest new star".

Pitchfork's Julianne Escobedo Shepherd began her review noting that on the album, Tyla "flexes her fidelity to pop-R&B" and that the it "pulses with amapiano’s log-drum heartbeat". She describes her singing ability as "savvy" and states that her "vocal intimacy betrays her influences". Writing for Rolling Stone, Will Hermes writes that the album "coasts safely on its vibes" and that her debut "shows she’s up to the challenge", labelling her the most "effective ambassador" for amapiano.

Commercial performance
Tyla debuted at number 24 on the US Billboard 200 chart, earning 24,000 album-equivalent units in its first week and becoming the highest-charting album on the Billboard 200 chart by a female African soloist in the chart's history. Tyla debuted at number one of the US Billboard World Albums chart and peaked at number one on the UK R&B Chart. The album also peaked at number 26 on the Canadian Albums Chart, at number 19 on the UK Albums Chart, at number 25 on Nigerian Official Top 100 Albums chart, at number 8 on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, and at number 72 on the Scottish Albums Chart. Tyla was certified Gold in Brazil by Pro-Música Brasil.

Track listing
Notes
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Personnel
Musicians


 * Tyla – lead vocals (all tracks), background vocals (tracks 5, 7–12)
 * Kelvin Momo – vocals (track 1)
 * Sammy Soso – bass, programming (tracks 3, 14); background vocals (9–11)
 * Olmo Zucca – bass (track 3)
 * Jack LoMastro – keyboards (track 3)
 * Adenine Zen – choir (track 4)
 * Greg Dwight – choir (track 4)
 * Ivie Ideh – choir (track 4)
 * Mari Songs – choir (track 4)
 * PJ Greaves – choir (track 4)
 * Paula – choir (track 4)
 * Shanice Steele – choir (track 4)
 * Sincerely Wilson – choir (track 4)
 * Ari PenSmith – background vocals (tracks 5, 7, 9–12)
 * Tems – lead vocals, background vocals (track 5)
 * Jamal Europe – guitar (track 6)
 * Nadia – violin (track 6)
 * Believve – background vocals (tracks 8–11)
 * Mocha – background vocals (tracks 9–11)
 * Gunna – lead vocals (track 9)
 * Skillibeng – lead vocals (track 9)
 * James Mwanza – keyboards (track 10)
 * Becky G – lead vocals (track 11)
 * Gaetan Judd – guitar (track 12)
 * Travis Scott – lead vocals (track 14)

Technical


 * Colin Leonard – mastering
 * Oscar Cornejo – mixing (track 1), engineering (5, 10–14)
 * Leandro "Dro" Higaldo – mixing (tracks 2–6, 8–14)
 * Serge Courtois – mixing (track 7)
 * Kelvin Momo – engineering (track 1)
 * Richard Ledesma – engineering (tracks 2, 3, 14)
 * Charlie Rolfe – engineering (tracks 2, 4, 5, 9)
 * Sammy Soso – engineering, arrangement (tracks 3, 14)
 * Ebenezer Maxwell – engineering (tracks 3, 14)
 * Jeremy Tomlinson – engineering (track 7)
 * Sir Nolan – engineering (track 7)
 * Believve – engineering, arrangement (track 8)
 * Florian "Flo" Ongonga – engineering (track 9)
 * Aidan Duncan – engineering assistance (tracks 2–5, 7–)
 * Timothy Ishejamaica Kahwa – engineering assistance (tracks 10, 11)