The online debate around Tyla’s world tour has opened a much wider conversation on whether African artists be held responsible for the political tensions between their countries.
Nigerian activist, opposition politician and former presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore said on X that anger over anti-migrant attacks should be directed at political leaders in Nigeria and South Africa, rather than artists.
In a post, he said: “No-one should hold a talented musician like Tyla vicariously liable for the crimes of xenophobia. Artistes are not responsible for the failures of politicians except where there is ample evidence they’re enablers.”
Nigerian culture journalist Mayowa Idowu told the BBC that while the anger may come from a desire for accountability, directing it towards an artist risks missing the wider issue.
“I think they are well intentioned because people are seeking accountability and they’re looking beyond governments who they do not trust or have faith in. That said, I think they are misguided and they risk devolving into acts of hypocrisy. The artist in question has worked with Nigerian artists and performed in Nigeria previously,” he said.
Idowu argues that performers should not be pressured into taking political positions simply because of their nationality.
Tyla has found herself at the centre of rivalry between the two countries before.
Earlier this year, she beat four other African artists, including three from Nigeria, to clinch her second Grammy award in the Best African Music Performance category.
She won the inaugural version of the prize in 2024, again beating a field that included Nigerian heavyweights such as Burna Boy and Davido.
With two wins in the category’s first three years, Tyla has become one of the biggest Grammy success stories in African music – while also becoming a symbol in a fan rivalry that often frames Nigerian and South African artists against each other.
UK-based Nigerian culture journalist and writer Dami Ajayi said that Tyla has never presented herself to be anti-Nigeria but “we interpret her winning two Grammy Awards in a nominations list full of Nigerian musicians as being anti-Nigerian”.
“These targeted retaliatory campaigns are not particularly new. There were also calls to boycott the recent hit Netflix show The Polygamist, adapted from Zimbabwean Sue Nyathi’s novel and co-directed by Akin Omotosho, a Nigerian living in South Africa,” he added.
South African journalist Thango Ntwasa said that while it was difficult to comment on the removal of Lagos from Tyla’s world tour line-up, “it’s a very interesting time because we’re seeing arts and politics… really confronting each other now more than ever”.
He also touched on the criticism levelled at artists like Tyla and Noah on their apparent silence on the migration issue, saying that while it’s understandable for artists to want to be apolitical, it was important for “celebrities… to understand that as a public figure, your opinion or position on a political issue does matter”.
Ntwasa noted that South African artists had reported facing animosity when visiting other African nations and that, because touring is a big part of how they make money, the negative attitudes could affect them down the line.
