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Tyla has won the first-ever GRAMMY award for Best African Music Performance!
"What the heck? This is crazy! I never thought I'd say I won a GRAMMY at 22," the South African performer said during her acceptance speech.
Tyla, who was up against ASAKE & Olamide, Burna Boy, David and Ayra Starr, won the category for her song 'Water'. According to the Recording Academy, the amapiano-based pop song made it to the Billboard Hot 100 last year, the first for a South African solo artist since Hugh Masekala in 1968! It also peaked at No. 7 making her the highest-charting African female solo musician in Billboard history and even made it to No. 1 on the US Billboard Afrobeats charts. Pretty cool, huh?
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While up on stage, Tyla also gave her family a big shoutout: "I know my mother's crying in here somewhere."
The Best African Music Performance category is one of three new categories at this year's awards. It was created so the Academy could better honour music from the continent, according to GRAMMYs president Harvey Mason Jr.
Aussie superstar Kylie Minogue won the award in the newly created Best Pop Dance Recording category, her first GRAMMY win in 20 years. And Meshell Ndegeocello took home the first-ever Best Alternative Jazz Album.
Other winners during the evening included Miley Cyrus who picked up her first career GRAMMY for her song 'Flowers', SZA, Billie Eilish and Finneas and Boygenius.
(Feature Image Credit: Getty Images for The Recording Academy)
