When one says they have ascended the Met steps, they might not mean it in the same way local hitmaker Tyla did for the annual Met Gala.
The annual affair is typically hosted on the first Monday in May to raise funds for the Metropolitan Museum’s fashion department. The glitzy gala is invite only from Vogue magazine, and has seen Beyoncé, the Kardashians and Rihanna in a famous “omelette dress” turn heads at what is considered the most important red carpet event to attend.
Joining other fashion icons in designs by top designers was the Water singer, who rocked up in a statuesque gown made of sand. The creation of Balmain’s Olivier Rousteing, the custom gown was his take on the “Garden of Time” theme based on the time loop short story of the same name.
“The inspiration behind this creation stemmed from a desire to redefine boundaries and transform a transient material into an everlasting masterpiece,” Rousteing told Vogue.
“The idea of sculpting a garment from something as ephemeral as sand ignited my imagination and I could not be happier with the end result.”
Tyla was drawn to the idea for its creativity and was keen to wear the gown after seeing early sketches by Rousteing.
“The idea was crazy and I loved it. I’m excited and a little nervous but I’m looking forward to having a fun night at the Met.”
The dress was not all dust but a conceptual wearable sculpture. It features three different colours of sand mixed with specks of crystal studs. While the boxy hourglass clutch has been a favourite for some at houses like Balenciaga, the bag got a literal spin for Tyla’s ensemble with the sands of time.
Tyla Laura Seethal was born 30 January 2002, known mononymously as Tyla, is a South African singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Johannesburg, she signed with Epic Records in 2021 following the domestic success of her 2019 debut single, “Getting Late” featuring Kooldrink.
Tyla rose to international fame with the release of her 2023 single “Water”, which entered the top ten in sixteen countries including the United Kingdom and United States. “Water” was the first song by a South African soloist to enter the US Billboard Hot 100 in 55 years and was awarded the inaugural Grammy Award for Best African Music Performance in 2024. The single preceded her self-titled debut album (2024), which was released to critical acclaim and moderate commercial success, entering the top 25 in six countries including the United States.
Tyla is the youngest African artist to win a Grammy Award, and has also earned nominations for a BRIT Award, a Soul Train Music Award, a MOBO Award, and two South African Music Awards. She has been deemed the “queen of popiano”, a fusion of the pop and amapiano genres.
She had been studying towards a degree in mining engineering, and after much persuasion and “a lot of crying”, her parents had agreed to let Tyla take a year off university to attempt to lift her music career off the ground. She then signed a recording contract with Epic Records through a joint venture with Fax Records in the United States in May 2021. She followed up her debut single with the singles “Overdue” in October 2021, and “To Last” in November 2022
Tyla’s first public performance occurred in 2023 during the Dolce & Gabbana afterparty at Milan Fashion Week, following the release of her single “Been Thinking”, which earned Tyla her first chart placements of her career, on the Billboard Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay and Rhythmic Airplay charts. Heven Haile of Pitchfork described it as a “slick club anthem that channels the seductive pop-R&B hits of mid-2000s Ciara and Rihanna”. Tyla then joined Chris Brown as the opening act for his Under the Influence Tour. In May 2023, she released the single “Girl Next Door”, featuring Nigerian singer Ayra Starr.
She also later released the song “Water” in July 2023 as the lead single from her upcoming self-titled debut studio album. After spawning a viral dance challenge on the social media platform TikTok, the song became a top 10 hit in the United States, United Kingdom and Australia, among several other countries.
