South African singer Tyla has sparked outrage amongst many Nigerians after announcing Lagos as one of the stops on her upcoming ‘A*POP’ World Tour.
The Grammy-winning singer unveiled the tour dates on July 27, shortly after releasing her sophomore album.
The tour, which begins on October 12, will take her across 11 countries, including England, the United States, Nigeria, Germany and South Africa.
The announcement, however, gained traction, sparking outrage on social media, with many Nigerians calling for a boycott of the concert over renewed xenophobic attacks against Nigerians and other foreign nationals in South Africa.
According to several critics, Tyla, since the rise of xenophobia in her home country, has not once addressed the violence publicly.
What Nigerian celebrities are saying about Tyla’s Lagos concert
Media personality Do2dtun, who was among the first people to criticise the planned concert, recalled the backlash Burna Boy faced in South Africa over his comments on xenophobia and questioned why Nigerians should embrace South African artists despite repeated attacks on their citizens.
Reality TV star Pere Egbi also weighed in, urging the Nigeria Immigration Service to deny Tyla and her team entry visas.
“Nigerian @nigimmigration, we are collectively imploring you to intentionally deny Tyla and her team visas as well. They can’t do this to our own, and we welcome their own. Madness must match madness,” he wrote on X.
Content creator Sea King similarly supported calls to boycott the concert, arguing that the organisers had failed to “read the room” given the current tensions.
Digital creator D English Alhaji also opposed the show, stating that Tyla should not perform in Nigeria because she had not condemned attacks against Nigerians and other Africans in South Africa.
Meanwhile, digital creator Isa Bako, son of the late military governor of Akwa Ibom State, Colonel Yakubu Bako, posted a video encouraging people to assault concertgoers. His remarks have drawn attention because they advocate violence, which is unlawful.
But why are Nigerians really angry?
The outrage comes amid renewed anti-immigrant tensions in South Africa.
Nigeria and several other African countries, including Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Lesotho and Zimbabwe, have advised their citizens in South Africa to remain vigilant.
Following a rise in attacks, the Federal Government recently evacuated more than a thousand Nigerians in four batches, with the most recent group arriving in Lagos on July 3rd, aboard an Air Peace charter flight.
The latest unrest has been linked to growing anti-migrant sentiment in South Africa, where unemployment remains above 30 per cent. Protest marches have taken place in several cities, with some demonstrators demanding the removal of undocumented migrants.
Tensions escalated after a coalition of citizen groups issued a public ultimatum calling on undocumented foreign nationals to leave the country by June 30. Although the South African government distanced itself from the ultimatum, the announcement heightened anxiety among migrant communities and prompted several African countries to begin voluntary repatriation efforts.
Nigerian authorities also extended the screening exercise for citizens wishing to return home voluntarily to accommodate more affected persons.
