Tyla Cancels Nigeria Lagos Concert After Threats Over Alleged Xenophobia Silence

• Tyla dropped her Lagos concert from her upcoming tour after Nigerians threatened to harm her if she entered the country
• The backlash followed criticism that the Grammy winner stayed silent on xenophobic attacks targeting foreigners in South Africa
• Fans and commentators are divided, with some backing her decision and others calling out her refusal to use her platform

Grammy-winning South African artist Tyla has pulled out of her planned Lagos concert after a wave of threats from Nigerian citizens who demanded she speak out against xenophobic attacks in South Africa. The cancellation has since ignited a fierce debate online about whether artists have a responsibility to address political tensions in their home countries.

The December show was part of Tyla's tour announcement, which originally included Nigeria as one of her African stops. However, the booking immediately drew criticism, with many Nigerians arguing that the Water hitmaker had stayed conspicuously quiet as foreigners, including many Nigerians living in South Africa, faced violent xenophobic attacks. Some went as far as threatening to harm her if she set foot in the country.

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Rather than address the controversy publicly, Tyla's team opted to quietly remove Lagos from the tour schedule entirely.

Check out the post from @RedMedia_us below:

Why Nigeria Targeted Tyla

The backlash against Tyla fits into a broader pattern of international artists and promoters distancing themselves from South African acts following the spike in xenophobic violence in the country. Critics felt that Tyla, who enjoys significant popularity across Africa, had a unique opportunity to speak out but chose not to.

The decision to cancel rather than engage has split public opinion sharply.

@DanielRegha weighed in directly: "Tyla chose to drop Lagos from her tour amid the backlash; She cancelled her Lagos concert rather than taking her platform to address the xenophobic crisis. Let that sink in."

@certified_xskx was equally blunt: "I love Tyla, but be for real one African country? Ah ah, how's that a tour? She has so many African fans, but she decided to go to the one country that actually doesn't like her… smh."

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Social media backs Tyla's Decision

Not everyone saw the cancellation as a misstep. Many South Africans rushed to defend the artist, arguing that she owed nobody an explanation.

@MindUrselfPls wrote: "She's more South African for not going where she's not wanted. A lot of y'all should learn from her. The world would be a better place."

@LadyMpopi agreed: "Nothing to address. When you are not wanted somewhere, you simply don't go or leave if already there. Learn from Tyla as Nigerians/Chidimma. Choosing to make yourselves victims as if you have no country is shameful."

@LeanoNeo placed the blame elsewhere: "Her team failed her on this one, shouldn't have included Lagos in the first place."

Water reaches multi-platinum status

In a previous report from Briefly News, Tyla's global smash Water reached 4x Platinum in the US after selling more than four million units, adding another massive milestone to her career.

Push 2 Start climbed from Gold to Platinum, while ART secured Gold certification, showing Tyla's growing dominance in the US market.

Source: Briefly News