Tyla – Water

South African global star Tyla, who has dominated the second half of 2023 with her viral single, “Water,” arrives today with its highly-anticipated music video. The video, directed by Child and Kwasi Fordjour, is now playing.

Part of what makes “Water” one of the year’s standout feel-good tracks is its effervescent nature, and the music video takes that theme a step further. Themed around Tyla and a cohort of friends preparing to and stepping out to party, the “Water” video dares its viewer to have as good a time as Tyla, quickly flashing glimpses of what makes a summer night a summer night: bathroom linkups with the girls, intricate, pre-planned outfits and enough gyration to break a sweat even in the cooling air of the night. The 21-year-old star shines, gracefully slinking throughout the video to the rhythm of her infectious lyrics, meshing seamlessly with a dance party at the apex of the night. Effortless switches between centerstage and integrating with light choreography are additionally noteworthy.

The arrival of the “Water” video represents the crowning achievement of what’s been a whirlwind 2023 and rollout for the rising star’s first single to chart on multiple global Billboard Songs charts. The song debuted in August to widespread fanfare, immediately sparking interest and fan interaction on social media. A TikTok challenge ensued, and the song has since soundtracked over 1.6 million posts on the platform and generated a whopping 3 billion views. Prior to the arrival of today’s video, Tyla racked up over 10 million YouTube views between the official “Water” audio, lyric video and Vevo DSCVR performance video, and she’s quickly approaching a quarter-billion subscribers.

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