South African singer Tyla has quietly removed Lagos from the African leg of her world tour, following mounting calls from Nigerians for a total boycott of South African artists and businesses over renewed xenophobic tensions.

The Lagos stop, previously listed for December 22 on her official tour schedule, no longer appears among her confirmed dates. Fans who had been anticipating her first major solo performance in Nigeria noticed the change after checking updated tour information on her official platforms.

The development comes against the backdrop of growing outrage in Nigeria over reports of fresh xenophobic attacks targeting Nigerians and other foreign nationals in South Africa, as well as the deportation of more than a thousand Nigerians labelled as undocumented immigrants. Nigerian social media has been awash with videos, testimonies and commentary alleging harassment, business closures and violent incidents directed at migrants.

In response, Nigerian users on X, Instagram and TikTok launched coordinated campaigns urging a cultural and economic boycott of South African interests. Hashtags calling for the cancellation of South African performers in Nigeria trended for days, with Tyla’s Lagos concert singled out as a symbolic test of public sentiment.

Many critics argued that hosting a South African pop star in Lagos at a time when Nigerians in South Africa were reportedly under attack would send the wrong message. Some fan pages that had previously promoted the concert pivoted to amplifying boycott messages, while ticket inquiries slowed amid the controversy.

Tyla and her management have not issued any formal statement explaining the removal of the Lagos date. There has been no clarification on whether the decision was driven by security concerns, political pressure, logistical issues or a direct response to the boycott calls. Requests for comment from her representatives have so far gone unanswered.

The cancellation underscores how cultural events are increasingly becoming flashpoints in wider diplomatic and social disputes between African nations. For many Nigerian music lovers, Tyla’s absence from Lagos is a disappointment, but for activists behind the boycott, it is being hailed as evidence that sustained public pressure can have tangible consequences.

Whether the Lagos show might be reinstated if tensions ease remains unclear, but for now, Nigerian fans will have to watch Tyla’s world tour from afar.