- Tyla explains she avoided Rihanna at the Met Gala to not recreate their awkward previous encounter.
- Rihanna posts a video featuring a song by Ayra Starr, leading fans to believe she’s shading Tyla.
- The public has pitted Tyla and Ayra Starr against each other, fueling the narrative of a potential rivalry.
Even after Tyla made a video clarifying there’s no bad blood, fans are convinced Rihanna still has some digs to make.
This whole saga begins with video from the Met Gala, which shows the South African singer standing near Rihanna, with no exchange between the two. Fans immediately noticed the awkwardness and started to speculate about a possible snub from the Fenty founder.
Tyla quickly took to social media to respond to these rumors, insisting she was the one who chose not to approach the singer.
Per her account, Tyla met the Fenty founder last year, and she was “busy,” so she didn’t want to recreate that moment with this interaction.
“Bacially, everyone knows I love Rih,” Tyla began, speaking to the camera. “So I met her last year, and she was cool. I met her, but I think she was occupied. I went up to her, and i was like, ‘Oh, hey.’ She was like, ‘Hey, my baby daddy is calling me,’ and then she left. I was like, ‘Oh, maybe she was busy.’”
Because of this previous interaction, which made the “Water” singer feel “awkward,” she didn’t want to approach Rihanna at the Met Gala.
“I don’t know how to say hi,” she continued. “If I feel like someone is busy, it’s like….So this time, I was waiting for my car, and she was right there. I didn’t want to go up because I felt like she was busy. You know what I mean? The last time she was busy.”
In her conclusion, Tyla made it clear that she didn’t keep her distance due to any ill-will, but rather, with hopes that they can have a better interaction down the line.
“So when we do speak, if we do end up speaking ever, I want it to be calm so we both can just vibe and talk nicely,” she said.
But, following this explanation, Rihanna stirred the pot by posting a video to her account recapping the Met Gala, featuring the hit song “Who’s Dat Girl” by Nigerian artist Ayra Starr. While it could just be a coincidence, because of the curious timing, many fans thought it was interesting for Rihanna to publicly endorsed Ayra while “ignoring” Tyla.
Ayra often credits the “Diamonds” hitmaker as one of her biggest inspirations, and the two have been seen together at various events over the years. Starr even called Rihanna her “big sister” in an interview earlier this year, cementing their close relationship.
Still, this post with Ayra’s song, paired with all of the ongoing drama surrounding Tyla, had fans drawing some serious conclusions. While neither artist has acknowledged any rivalry between them, the public has pitted them against each other, with Tyla’s rise being compared to Ayra’s long-standing success. Plus, Ayra Starr lost her Grammy this year to Tyla, only making the narrative stronger.
Rihanna is no stranger to throwing some subtle shade, so we wouldn’t put it past her–but she could also just be supporting a friend and ignoring all the drama. Take a look at what fans had to say about her choice in music down below:
