South African Grammy-winning singer Tyla has removed Lagos from the schedule of her APOP World Tour, just days after her planned December 22 concert in Nigeria sparked widespread calls for a boycott over renewed xenophobic attacks against Nigerians in South Africa.
A check of Tyla’s official tour website on Friday showed that the Lagos date, which had earlier appeared on the itinerary, was no longer listed.
While the updated schedule still includes all previously announced performances across Europe, North America and South Africa, the Nigerian stop has been dropped.
Tyla had initially announced Lagos as the only Nigerian destination on the APOP World Tour before the final performances in Cape Town on January 4 and Johannesburg on January 9.
The announcement generated mixed reactions online, with many Nigerians urging organisers to cancel the concert in response to reports of continued xenophobic attacks on Nigerians living in South Africa. Others argued that entertainers should not be blamed for political or societal issues beyond their control.
The debate intensified on Thursday after social media activist Martins Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, threatened to mobilise members of his “Ratel Movement” to prevent the concert from taking place.
In a Facebook post, Otse declared, “TYLA SHOW WILL NOT BE HAPPENING IN NIGERIA.
“This is a message to SOUTH AFRICANS. WE ARE AFRICANS AND WE DONT UNALIVE OUR OWN, since you people have taken it upon yourselves to unalive other Africans because according to you guys other African nationalities living in South Africa are taking your jobs.
“WE ARE STANDING IN SOLIDARITY TO SAY NO TO THE PROMOTERS AND CELEBRITIES FROM SOUTH AFRICA WHO HAVE REFUSED TO SPEAK UP AGAINST THESE ATTACKS ON OTHER AFRICANS LIVING IN SOUTH AFRICA.
However, the 2027 presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, opposed the boycott campaign, insisting that Tyla should not be held responsible for xenophobic violence.
“Nigerians should direct their anger at their real enemies… No one should hold a talented musician like @Tyllaaaaaaa vicariously liable for the crimes of xenophobia,” Sowore wrote on X, adding that “Tyla’s Lagos concert must go on.”
The removal of Lagos from the tour schedule comes amid renewed concerns over the safety of Nigerians in South Africa following reports of fresh xenophobic attacks and the deaths of Nigerian nationals, including Chika Ibe in Cape Town.
As of the time this report was filed, neither Tyla nor her management had explained why the Lagos concert was removed from the tour schedule.
The concert promoters had also not issued any statement announcing the cancellation or postponement of the event.