Tyla sendoff a sassy but savage ‘sorry, not sorry’ snub at Tiwa?

Grammy-winning star Tyla stole the spotlight at this year’s Global Citizen Festival in New York City — not only with her music but also with her stage presence and a comment that has set social media buzzing.

The 23-year-old Water hitmaker was performing in front of more than 60,000 fans at the Great Lawn in Central Park on September 27. While performing Mr Media, which is the lead track from her July mixtape, Tyla punctuated the performance with the phrase: “Sorry, not sorry.”

The timing of that comment has fuelled speculation about whether it was a subtle clap-back at Nigerian superstar Tiwa Savage. Savage recently caused a stir during an interview on The Breakfast Club, where she weighed in on Tyla’s ongoing identity debate.

While acknowledging why the term “coloured” is offensive in the US, Savage also expressed sympathy for Tyla, causing remarks that divided online opinion. Savage took it as far as saying that in her culture, elders sometimes speak up “on behalf of” a younger person to heal rifts.

“We apologise,” she said, emphasising she believed Tyla had no bad intentions and acknowledged that she understands why the use of the word “coloured” is hurtful in America. Savage also said listeners should consider different cultural contexts.

With Mr Media’s biting lyrics which include lines such as: “Remember when I used to fight with words? Really, I should be worse, I should be meaner. What I? None of your concern.”

Many fans wondered if Tyla was addressing critics or sending a direct message.

On X, Nolwazi Tusini praised her stance, saying: “Tyla is giving me life with how she’s handling this identity conversation. Folks keep talking about how young she is to try to explain away what she is communicating so clearly about who she is. And I love that she is refusing to allow it.”

Another fan, Xolie Mahlangu, said: “Tyla saying ‘sorry, not sorry’ before performing Mr Media at Global Citizen is so South African of her.”

Cardi B has also recently weighed in on the matter, defending Tyla amid the backlash by saying: “You guys are being really harsh on this girl.”

The singer has faced criticism from some American audiences who accuse her of distancing herself from blackness and claim her US chart performance has been affected by a lack of support from black listeners.

In June 2024 Tyla clarified her stance in a social media post: “I’m mixed with black/Zulu, Irish, Mauritian/Indian and coloured. In Southa [South Africa] I would be classified as a coloured woman and other places I would be classified as a black woman,” she said.

“Race is classified differently in different parts of the world. I don’t expect to be identified as coloured outside South Africa by anyone not comfortable doing so, but to close this conversation, I’m coloured in South Africa and a black woman.”

She has repeatedly stressed that she has “never denied her blackness”.

This year’s Global Citizen Festival, hosted by Hugh Jackman, again used the power of music to drive activism, which is a major focus in 2025, on expanding energy access to one million people in Africa, highlighting the festival’s roots in fighting poverty, inequality and climate change.

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