South Africa Proud as Tyla Bags International Win After Rihanna's Seemingly Shady Met-Gala Recap

Published 9 May 2026 at 1:06 PM

by Rutendo Masasi

3 min read

Tyler has been in the headlines following her appearance at the Met Gala, among other A-listers in Hollywood
The musician received viral attention after an interaction she had with the popstar turned businesswoman, Rihanna
Amid the social media debate between Tyla and Rihanna's fan base, the South African officially made another major stride in her career

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Tyla is making strides to make South Africa proud once again in international achievement. The now global musician was in headlines as people speculated that Rihanna ignored her at the Met Gala.

Tyla made South Africa proud with latest international gig — Tyla left South Africa filled with pride over her latest international gig. Image: @tyla
Source: Instagram

The awkward moment between Rihanna and Tyla sparked debate, and the South African musician addressed it. Tyla sparked more buzz recently after landing a big opportunity with FIFA.

According to FIFA, the World Cup 2026 opening ceremony performance in Mexicoon 11 June 2026 will include Tyla as one of the headliners. Posts on social media celebrated that Tyla was officially on the lineup for the 2026 FIFA World Cup performances. Tyla joins the likes of Katy Perry, who will perform in the opening ceremony in the USA, as she is set to perform at two opening ceremonies. Following fans' speculations about her standing with Rihanna, other posts claimed that the Barbados-born pop icon was also meant to perform at the World Cup opening ceremony, but official lineup releases did not include any performances by Rihanna. See the announcement below:

South Africa proud of Tyla

Many fans of the musician felt that Tyla was a perfect pick to perform at the World Cup ceremony. A snippet of the song Tyla has in store, especially for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, also sparked interest. Listen to a snippet of the song and read people's comments below:

Tyla has immense support from South Africans — Tyla amassed immense support from South Africans since her debut on the pop scene. Image: @tyla
Source: Instagram

@heismarshalls applauded:

",."

@Aishafierce4 said:

"The timing of this announcement is nasty."

@XoliswaZondo exclaimed:

"We are definitely beating Mexico! NO DNA JUST RSA."

@Zee_weh_ applauded:

"Tyla I need you to give us a performance of a lifetime, go to training like you're training for the military, the world will be watching, SELL YOURSELF."

@LilonaKlaas joked:

"Ayra Starr is set to perform WHO'S DAT GIRL in Rihanna's bedroom on June 11."

@Thereal_Alson said:

"When a door gets closed, definitely God will open another one. Congratulations Tyla. You deserve this and more. South Africans are so proud of you mamaz."

Rihanna shades Tyla in Met Gala recap

Briefly News previously reported that, well, there you have it, Rihanna has made her stance loud and clear. After she was side-eyed for ignoring Tyla at the Met Gala red carpet, Riri has finally responded with a very subtle but loud clapback.

The What's My Name singer posted a Met Gala recap, showing the preparations that went into her and ASAP Rocky's looks. It seemed cute at first, but she added a song by Nigerian singer Ayra Starr titled Who’s Dat Girl and things spiralled.