Small but mighty South African sensation Tyla is soaring to new heights in the music industry, winning a coveted GRAMMY and topping Billboard’s charts at such a young age.
Tyla’s first claim to fame was her mega-viral Water song, which was initially released on July 28, 2023. Overflowing with addictive lyrics, Afrobeats, and elements of pop, the record-smashing hit song gained momentum in October when it debuted at No. 67 on the Billboard Hot 100 and reached a No. 7 peak by January (per Billboard).
In case you missed it, the South African sensation took home a GRAMMY in 2024 at just the age of 22. Embodying her signature hourglass on the big event, Tyla was surprised when she won the first-ever GRAMMY Award for Best African Music Performance (per GRAMMY). Water, which remarkably climbed to No. 1 on Billboard’s US Afrobeats Songs chart, was too hot to overlook for GRAMMY voters.
While Tyla’s raw vocal talent, emotionally rich lyrics, and electrifying stage presence continue to captivate audiences, fans are equally curious about the singer’s signature style, presence, and surprisingly petite frame.
How Tall Is Tyla?
Image credits: @tyla
Upon fans’ requests, Tyla revealed her real height in a brief, 7-second TikTok clip. She cheekily used the sound of Nicki Minaj to share that she stands at 5′ 3″ (1.6 m) — a piece of info that IMDb officially confirmed.
@tyla_ Reply to @i_am_izzy_ 5,3💕
Tyla isn’t as short as she is received. In fact, she is noticeably taller than other women in her native country. South Africa has the world’s 76th shortest average height for women, which is 158 cm, up from 154.9 cm in 1914 (per BusinessTech).
Even in the country where Tyla first rose to fame, she is still about the same height as the average American woman, which is 5 feet 3.5 inches (per Cleveland Clinic).
When compared to other top stars in the music industry, Tyla appears to be considerably shorter. Beyoncé, for example, measures 5ft 6 (167.6 cm), whereas S & M hitmaker Rihanna beats her heightwise, standing at 5ft 8 (172.7 cm). Other icons like Zendaya and Jennifer Hudson measure 5′ 10″ (1.78 m).
Tyla’s “Guess My Height” Post Has Fans Shooting Their Shot
Tyla seems to enjoy teasing fans about her height. She shared with her over 10 million Instagram followers a short clip of her happily posing in different angles, leaving the guesswork for confused fans. Captioned “Guess my height,” the post garnered plenty of guesses that are far from accurate.
User @nkosi_sandiswa believed that Tyla is much taller than she appears to be, towering at “173cm.” On the other hand, @stamoe_ guessed that she is as petite as “4’11”,” whereas @prodbyinferno took it even further with wild guesses, warning, “she 3’8 guys don’t let her fool u.”
With her noticeably small stature, Tyla’s weight has been another topic of discussion among her fans. “I don’t think you guys realize just how small these celebrities are,” @Ok-Swim-9667 said about Tyla in a Reddit discussion. “110 [pounds] is like, sabrina carpenter.”
Although Tyla had her fair share of negative comments about her body proportions, she still rejoices in many other confidence-boosting comments. “Beautiful skin. Feminine. Petite. Large eyes, high cheekbones, good facial harmony, she has a sharp jaw but Isn’t wide set and masculine,” raved one Reddit user. “She’s an absolute stunner.”
Tyla’s “Rude” Attitude at the 2024 MTV VMAs
Tyla’s petite frame and somehow “girly” attitude triggered lots of online backlash, especially after she asked for help holding the Moon Person during her 2024 MTV VMAs speech. Tyla, who accepted the Best Afrobeats award for her record-breaking single “Water,” seemingly struggled to carry her trophy during the star-studded event.
“Oh my gosh. You guys know me and are holding awards. Yo, I can’t — I’m not strong enough. Please, please,” she said at the VMAs, and fellow musician Lil Nas X stepped in to hold the statue.
During the event, people quickly slammed the rising singer for her “rude” behavior, so Tyla took to X to squash the criticism. “Y’all make everything weird…,” she ranted. “I was not asking my girl Halle… We just girls STFU I WON A VMAAAA.”
While the intense backlash was like water off a duck’s back to Tyla, Cardi B still needed to defend her fellow musician. The WAP rapper cleared the air between Tyla and furious fans during an X Spaces session, where she bluntly revealed some context and ranted about common public perception of the singer.
“You gotta worry about motherf—kin’ doing a speech, looking good while you’re carrying a motherf**king’ 10-pound f—kin’ [award] in your motherf—kin’ hand. So I just don’t think you understand how f—king heavy those f—kin’ awards are,” Cardi B raged.
She also clarified that Tyla never asked Halle Bailey to hold it, as some speculated, but rather Lil Nas X.
Tyla’s Oozes Confidence, but Some People Are Upset
Image credits: @tyla
Tyla’s first megahit, “Water,” set the tone for her self-confidence, which has been through the roof lately.
The first and youngest-ever South African soloist in 55 years has always dreamt of becoming the top pop star of her native continent. Now, she took the world by storm with her hear-it-everywhere-you-go song and other bangers like “PUSH 2 START,” “Breathe Me,” and “Art.” Tyla has been confidently serving for several years, kicking off her fast-growing career in late 2019 by debuting the song, Getting Late, with Kooldrink.
Tyla’s co-manager, Colin Gayle, revealed that Tyla was actually preparing for this sweeping success for her entire life (per Billboard). Gayle recalled the first time he met the starlet: “I was like, ‘What do you want to do?’ She said, ‘I want to be Africa’s first pop star.’ ”
As she gracefully climbs to the Billboard charts, Tyla is gearing up for more historic triumphs. “I’m really confident in what I’ve created,” she enthusiastically said. “Now’s a time where I can showcase a performance style where I’m not really dancing as much. Maybe I strip back a little bit more and I’m just serving vocals. But there’s no way to stop me. I’m always going to find a way.”
Tyla’s confidence seems to be too much for many, who tried to humble the chart-topper in several instances. “I hope Tyla doesn’t take it lightly that Olivier Rousteing, head designer of Balmain, is customizing her dress himself, by hand, at her first Met Gala,” @MissSassbox posted on X. “Especially after his burn accident just 3 years ago after his fireplace exploded and caused him severe damage, almost losing his vision and use of hands.”
What happens behind closed doors at the Met! (This kinda hurts me) pic.twitter.com/Yzl9LAiufp
— DvilCouture (@DvilCouture) May 7, 2024
User @glendavajmyre even found her choice of dress incompatible, remarking, “This boring a– dress, not even on theme.” Tyla stepped out at the Met Gala in a strapless, figure-hugging Balmain dress. She carried herself confidently in a gown covered in grains of sand (no Water, this time!) as she showed off all of her curves.
Nevertheless, other commenters were quick to jump to Tyla’s defense. “All she did was stand there yall find anything to complain about,” @bbhadcece wrote.
Others believed that negative remarks about Tyla were actually driven by jealousy. “Your word choice is giving jealousy and shade,” @NkechiKwenu insisted, whereas @distorted3000 agreed, “not you trying to humble Tyla unprovoked.”
Responding to negative remarks about Tyla’s attitude, X user @zimhipster said, “People with Tyla’s self-confidence always make insecure people start prescribing humility. Some people are just really self-actualized and justifiably have high self-esteem even at a young age. It’s not a problem.”
Unfazed by hateful comments and focused only on her success and supporters, Tyla is confident that she will only grow in fame with time. “People are going to see me everywhere,” she promised. “So if you don’t like me, I’m sorry.”
How Tall Is Tyla? A Look At The Singer’s Height, Style, And Public Reactions To Her Unshakable Confidence Bored Panda
