A grainy, high-contrast black-and-white portrait of Tyla with voluminous hair covering her face, overlaid with a bold pink “A*POP” graphic. Photo Credit: Tyla/Instagram

Tyla is officially ready to usher us into a new era. After months of subtle teasers, the South African singer has confirmed that her sophomore album, A*POP, will be released on 24 July 2026. The announcement arrived via a cinematic trailer that sets a clear tone for what is to come: a project that is unapologetically African, confident, and global.

The trailer serves as a visual manifesto for the A-Pop era. Tyla narrates the transition into this new phase of her career,describing the project as an evolution where she is “settled in” and has a clearer sense of her direction. In an interview with Rolling Stone, she explained that while her debut felt like a “rush,” she now knows exactly what she wants to say. This shift in perspective is evident in the album’s 19-track scope, which Tyla told i-D Magazine “really reflects” where she is in her life now, moving from the initial pressure of a massive debut to a sound that materialised naturally.

It is a significant moment for the singer, who has spent the last two years collecting accolades at a record-breaking pace. Her 2024 self-titled debut, “TYLA,” was the launchpad for “Water,” the viral hit that earned her the first-ever Grammy Award for Best African Music Performance. She proved that success was no fluke by winning the same category again in February 2026 for “Push 2 Start,” making her the first artist to win the award twice and the youngest African artist with two Grammys to her name.

While the full tracklist for A*POP remains under wraps, the album already has a solid foundation. It features “Chanel,” which first appeared on her 2025 mixtape “WWP,” and her recent collaboration with Zara Larsson, “She Did It Again,” which leans into a 2000s-inspired pop aesthetic. There are also reports of a collaboration with Wizkid titled “Dynamite” being part of this cycle, further expanding the cross-continental reach she is aiming for.

Tyla is scheduled to perform at the TODAY Show’s Citi Concert Series in New York City on the day of the release, marking a high-profile start to the album’s life cycle.

Watch the trailer below

The post Tyla Confirms A*POP Release Date With Cinematic Trailer appeared first on BellaNaija - Showcasing Africa to the world. Read today!.

Francis Mercier and Magic System members, including lead singer A’salfo in an orange Ivory Coast jersey, posing together. Photo Credit: Magic System/Instagram

Do you remember that song from the late 90s that had absolutely everyone on their feet — children, adults, grandparents — dancing like their lives depended on it? Nobody fully understood the lyrics, but that melody did not care. “Premier Gaou” by Magic System was that song, and it has just gone Platinum in France.

And not just the original. The 2023 Afro-house remix by Haitian DJ and producer Francis Mercier and Nitefreak is the version that earned the plaque, and the celebration that followed is the kind of video you watch twice just to feel something good.

Francis Mercier shared the moment on social media — him and the members of Magic System, standing in the streets of Paris, holding the commemorative platinum plaque and singing “Premier Gaou” at full volume with zero apologies. They are laughing, swaying, pointing at the plaque mid-lyric, and the call-and-response between Mercier and the Magic System members is pure Zouglou spirit from start to finish, punctuated with shouts of “Affaire à suivre!” — to be continued.

Ivorian music group Magic System (A’salfo, Goudé, Tino, and Manadja) posing together. Photo Credit: Magic System/Instagram

The lyrics they are belting out are as iconic as ever. “C’est dans ma galère que la go Antou m’a quitté, oh ah” — it was during my struggles that my girl Antou left me. And then the one line that has lived in the hearts of an entire generation: “Premier gaou n’est pas gaou oh, c’est deuxième gaou qui est gnata oh” — the first fool is not really a fool; it is the one who gets fooled a second time who is a real idiot.

Magic System first released “Premier Gaou” in 1999, and twenty-six years later the song is still finding new audiences, new charts and new milestones. Francis Mercier and Nitefreak gave it a new life in 2023, and that life has now gone Platinum in France.

 

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The post Magic System’s “Premier Gaou” Remix by Francis Mercier & Nitefreak Is Now Platinum in France appeared first on BellaNaija - Showcasing Africa to the world. Read today!.