South African singer Tyla has made history as the first African solo artist to hit one billion streams on Spotify with her song Water.
This milestone cements her place as a global star and showcases the growing impact of African music worldwide.
Tyla now joins the ranks of African artists who’ve crossed a billion streams, including Wizkid, Rema, and Tems. However, unlike them—who hit the mark through collaborations with international artists—Tyla did it solo. Wizkid featured on Drake’s One Dance, Rema teamed up with Selena Gomez on Calm Down, and Tems was part of Future’s Wait For U with Drake.
Released on July 28, 2023, Water gained momentum after Tyla’s performance at the Giants of Africa Festival in Kigali, Rwanda. A viral dance challenge soon followed, helping push the song up the charts.
The track’s mix of amapiano and R&B resonated globally, earning Tyla her first Grammy for Best African Music Performance at the 66th Grammy Awards in February 2024.
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Spotify’s head of music in Sub-Saharan Africa, Phiona Okumu, called the achievement a testament to Tyla’s talent and the power of music to break boundaries. “Tyla’s success is an inspiration to aspiring artists across Africa and the world, and we are honoured to have played a part in her journey,” she said.
The road to a billion streams was packed with milestones. Tyla first previewed Water at Spotify’s Greasy Tunes showcase in Johannesburg in July 2023 as part of the RADAR Africa program. The song blew up on TikTok, crossed one million daily streams in September, and hit 100 million total streams by October.
By February 2024, she had made Grammy history, and a year later, on February 19, 2025, Water officially hit one billion streams.
Her success highlights the increasing global reach of African music, boosted by initiatives like Spotify’s RADAR Africa and EQUAL Africa, which help emerging artists gain international exposure.
