We Wanna Party - Tyla
- Daniela Roux
- 48 minutes ago
- 5 min read
It’s August, the sun is out, perfume is fruit-scented, and Tyla’s new EP should be playing loud on your speakers. Just when we thought she may have been too preoccupied, this superstar has dropped an EP for the simple reason that ‘it’s summer’. The Mic’s Daniela Roux reviews We Wanna Party.
‘WWP’ is an initialism for an expression synonymous with Tyla: We Wanna Party. Tyla, born in Johannesburg, South Africa, is an artist who introduces a unique perspective to pop music. Since releasing the single Water (and her culminating rise to fame) she has established a persona of warmth, movement, and sensuality – all whilst helping introduce the world to South Africa’s local-born genre: amapiano. Thus, Tyla’s Zulu heritage plays an integral role in differentiating her sonically amongst other pop-artists. Interestingly, in terms of this project, Tyla notes: ‘I’m kind of in this phase of experimenting’. She importantly emphasises that her new work is ‘more than just amapiano and pop’. Tyla firmly believes that ‘genres can be [...] fluid’, and this EP cements the beginning of her discography’s expansion.
The EP commences with a commanding single that has been in her back pocket for years. DYNAMITE (featuring Wizkid) is a track that Tyla has been working on since 2022, one that she ‘would keep going back to’. She argues that its longevity is a testament to how good the record is, and I concur, as the first few lyrics illuminate the spirit for the rest of this EP. Wizkid sings: ‘bang with the rhythm, dance to the beat’ to the backdrop of a playful intro. Shortly after, Tyla’s sultry voice (in a lower pitch than usual) paints the narrative of dancing with a love interest. She elucidates to listeners a desire to escape in the boundless freedom of parties. This song, to me, is reminiscent of ones off her debut (TYLA) such as ART. An embedded message in many of her songs is that she’s unabashedly proud to feel adored. To lose herself in young love and/or the breeze of late night air. This song establishes a hybrid-genre, extrapolating the rhythmic production archetypally used in afrobeats alongside conventionally soulful amapiano melodies. Tyla has launched this EP with a meticulously paced dancing track. An ambience-building song that will fade into energetic conversations and laughs with your friends as you make your way out for the evening.
"Tyla firmly believes that ‘genres can be [...] fluid’, and this EP cements the beginning of her discography’s expansion."
The next track, MR. MEDIA, was conceptualised during the time period of growing public attention on Tyla. As an emerging artist, she reveals that she ‘had to get used to people being interested’ in her life. This song is an important exploration of what it means to be a young and innovative artist in the public sphere. Over recent years, Tyla has faced an insurmountable amount of meaningless scrutiny. It got to the point where she started to wonder: ‘Y’all gonna analyse every little thing I do?’ For a while, her art was overlooked and her persona became central to discussion. The important refrain in this song is ‘none of your concern’ as she cleverly mocks the media’s unjustified interest in her personal life. The phrase ‘woza-la’ (a Zulu expression of encouragement) is repeated in the chorus. Tyla directly confronts the media with the honour of her roots – an example of how, as previously mentioned, she distinguishes herself in contemporary pop. Her tone in this song is one of satirical cockiness – playfully inhibiting the role that the media is so desperate to force onto her. She reminds people that they would also be as confident as her if they ‘had [her] visuals’ or ‘material’. She bitingly states that she ‘should be meaner’, shedding the more innocent persona she entered the industry with. Tyla notes that whilst she ‘kept it a little PG for a while’ she is a grown woman now – a statement that is important to note as we move onto the next track.
Congruent with the previous statement, there is no doubt that she is no longer concerned with being ‘PG.’ Similarly to DYNAMITE, she emulates the storyline of being infatuated with an unnamed companion and losing herself to an impulsive entanglement. Furthermore, IS IT is one of the few songs that Tyla has explicitly cussed on (and on the first line no less). Following the reprimanding tone in MR. MEDIA, this track opens up with a series of questions. Her utilisation of rhetoric is expertly paired with the EP’s most prominent production yet. The song incorporates a log drum, which is a genre convention of amapiano, contributing to the distinctively percussive rhythm. The beat for IS IT will certainly solidify this song as a crowd-pleaser, perhaps even a club classic. In my opinion, IS IT is undoubtedly the dancing anthem on this EP. If one statement could summarise this track, it is Tyla’s declaration: ‘I didn’t really hold back’.
Tyla’s concluding track, entitled BLISS, was the introduction of WWP as she released it as a single prior to the EP drop. Yet, it is a track that doesn't emulate a lot of the genre or lyrical conventions of the other three songs. This track’s melody and Tyla’s restrainedly smooth projection introduces a sentimentality that has been absent on the other tracks. She sings softly and in higher notes – a total juxtaposition from the deep and strong ones she sang on DYNAMITE or MR. MEDIA. Even the production on this track is less pronounced compared to its precursor (IS IT). I would deem this the summer song to yearn to, to think about a summer fling to. Thus, after three formidable tracks, Tyla concludes her EP on a beautifully romantic note.
Though I am sure many of her listeners (myself included) craved a longer project from her, do not fear, because this EP is only the first part of a larger project. Tyla revealed on KISS XTRA that she will be releasing more music in October. In fact, it will be ‘a bigger one [...] for Africa’s summer.’ Once again, I will reiterate that the outstanding fact about Tyla is how grounded she is in her upbringing. She has revealed in interviews that her attitude towards her music is ‘to serve both’, to serve the Northern Hemisphere's music industry whilst never forgetting about her fanbase in the Southern Hemisphere. This attitude not only differentiates this project, but her discography in general. So, here in the UK, we can party to her while the sun still sets at 8pm. For anyone who’ll find themselves experiencing an African summer in December, anticipate another body of work to dance to. If you’re lucky enough, maybe you’ll experience both. If not, I will certainly be here to review it.
Daniela Roux
Edited by Daniela Roux
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