Amapiano reignited the DJing flame in my heart – Skyla Tylaa

British-based Jamaican DJ and producer Skyla Tylaa is the next big thing. The 24-year-old international DJ, born Lucy Batty, continues with her global takeover with her genre-defying sound that heavily infuses amapiano.

Her debut single, Bombshell (Cheza), is a collaboration with Diamond Platnumz, Tyler ICU, Khalil Harrison and DJ Exit. Sowetan gets to know Skyla Tylaa:

How did you get into the amapiano dance scene?

I was blessed to meet DJ Maphorisa, Major League DJz and Uncle Vinny at a Wizkid recording camp in Ghana in 2021. They put me onto the sound and introduced me to the culture. They took me under their wings, as they saw I had a genuine interest and love for the sound. When I first visited SA, they were showing me the ropes.

They took me to gigs, sessions and showed me parts of the country such as Joburg, Pretoria and Soweto. These relationships motivated me to take my DJ career even more seriously. I was DJing before, but amapiano reignited the flame in my heart. 

How did Bombshell (Cheza) come about?

Tyler and I had a session in London in spring last year. He presented the idea for the record, which was the amazing production and a vibey chorus and verse by Khalil. I loved it. Those two really don’t miss.

While touring later that summer, I began teasing the record. I met Benny, a dope choreographer from SA, who shared the same excitement about the record. He later created a dance challenge that was extra ammunition to push the record online and during my live sets.