South African singer Tyla has responded to the backlash she received after her awkward moment with Halle Berry on stage at the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards.
The 22-year-old Tyla has been making waves since the release of her hit single “Water” in 2023. On Wednesday, September 11, the single won Best Afrobeat at the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards.
The controversy began when a viral clip from the awards show appeared to show Tyla casting Halle Bailey in a submissive role.
Halle Bailey and Lil Nas were on stage to present her with the award. However, the moment was overshadowed by social media users who chastised Tyla for asking The Little Mermaid star and the “Industry Baby” hitmaker to hold her moon man because it was too heavy for her.
In the viral clip, as Tyla took the stage to accept her Moon Person Award, she struggled to hold up the statue during her speech.
“Oh my gosh,” The 22-year-old told the crowd. “You guys know me and are holding awards. I am not strong enough.”
She then turned to Halle and Lil Nas X for help before the “Old Town Road” singer swiftly stepped in to take the trophy from her.
Some fans interpreted Tyla’s decision to hand the award to those presenting as disrespectful, especially when they had noticed earlier that Tyala elbowed Halle out of the way as soon as she got on stage.
The backlash snowballed, with fans accusing Tyla of undermining Bailey, who has become a cultural icon in her own right.
However, both women were not having it with the commentary and quickly corrected the record of the rumors.
“Y’all make everything weird… I was not asking my girl Halle… We just girls,” Tyla wrote on X (formerly Twitter) a few minutes after the show wrapped. “STFU, I WON A VMAAAA.”
In response to her post, Bailey wrote: “Exactly, love u, babes, congrats.”
