Tyla’s MTV VMAs Minidress Is Hanging on by a Thread
ELLE’s October cover girl, Tyla, made her MTV VMAs debut with a vibrant pop of color. The singer arrived at the Elmont, New York ceremony in a yellow string minidress from Area’s latest collection, which just debuted at New York Fashion Week. In a red carpet interview, Tyla said she was looking for an outfit that was “my vibe, colorful,” and that she could “wear my natural hair” with.
The South African star is up for two awards this evening: Best Afrobeats Song (“Water”) and Best R&B Song (“Water”).
Tyla spoke to ELLE about how at just 14 years old, she became enamored with music. “When amapiano [South African house music] would come on, we would see everybody’s moves just change. Seeing the energy of it…it felt so spiritual,” she said. “I always wanted to mix it with other styles that I enjoy, like R&B and pop—and make it my own.”
She expressed disappointment that more people weren’t hearing the incredible music coming out of her home country. “I felt it was so special, and it needed to be shared,” she said. “I did my own version of it in hopes of getting people to go deeper and discover the other artists we have and the origins of my sound.”
As Tyla has become more famous globally, she has sensed a shift in herself. “I do feel like I’ve changed a lot in the span of a few months; people may not see it.,” she said. “I’m excited to see that in my next album.” She also hit back against comparisons to Rihanna and Britney Spears. “Initially I used to care. Recently I’ve just been feeling, ‘They’re gonna say what they wanna say, and it doesn’t even matter because I know it’s not that.’”
She added, “This year was me introducing myself. Next year I’m just gonna have fun. Do whatever, wear whatever. I’m just playing around a lot, and bringing a lot of my roots into my music. It’s still gonna be me, still sweaty vibes, but evolved.”
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