South African star Tyra has had a big year since the viral release of her hit song “Water.”

At the 2024 MTV VMAs on Wednesday, September 11, she won the award for Best Afrobeats for “Water.” While accepting her Moonperson, she said she was proud to represent her country as well as the “trend of lumping all African artists in with Afrobeats.”

Once on stage, she joked to the presenter, “I'm not strong enough,” and sweetly asked him to hold her award, before launching into a thoughtful speech. Water's impact on the world proves that African music can be pop music, too,” she began.

“This is very special, but also bittersweet. I know that there is a tendency to group all African artists under Afrobeats,” Tyra continued.

The 22-year-old musician then talked about how he specifically makes amateur piano music, a South African genre that combines house, jazz, and a sound that emerged in the 1990s known as kwaito. 'I come from South Africa. I represent amapiano and I represent my culture,” she said, praising her peers and other artists nominated in the Afrobeats category. She added: “From Africa to the world.”

Other artists nominated in the Best Afrobeats category included Ayra Starr featuring Giveon's “Last Heartbreak Song,” Burna Boy's “City Boys,” Chris Brown featuring Davido and Lojay's “Sensational”, Tems' “Love Me JeJe”, and Usher's “Pheelz”.

Tyra is one of this year's first-time nominees. In addition to Best Afrobeats, he is also nominated for Best New Artist of the Year, and Best R&B for “Water.”

The hitmaker released her self-titled debut studio album in March to critical acclaim.