Rihanna has long been a major inspiration for both Ayra Starr and Tyla.
By Mmesoma Onwuka
365Daily – It has been brewing for years, but the Ayra Starr versus Tyla debate has officially entered another chapter and this time, the timing is making fans raise their eyebrows
For years, social media has constantly placed the Nigerian superstar and South African Grammy winner side by side: who is bigger, who is more talented, who has the stronger global presence, who has the better catalogue and of course, who has Rihanna’s attention.
Then came the 2026 Met Gala.
A viral moment showed Tyla standing near Rihanna while the Barbadian superstar appeared occupied with another conversation.
Social media quickly turned the footage into a supposed “Rihanna ignored Tyla” narrative, even though Tyla later explained the moment differently and said she did not want to interrupt Rihanna while she appeared busy.
But then Rihanna seemingly poured petrol on the internet.
Shortly after the Met Gala, Rihanna posted a video featuring Ayra Starr’s “Who’s Dat Girl” as the soundtrack.
And the internet went: “WHO’S DAT GIRL?”
Fans immediately connected the dots and interpreted the song choice as a possible subliminal message to Tyla. There is no confirmation that Rihanna intended it as a diss, but that did little to stop the internet from turning it into another round of the Ayra versus Tyla debate.
And this is where the backstory becomes even more interesting.
Rihanna has long been a major inspiration for both Ayra Starr and Tyla. But Ayra has had several very public moments of closeness with the global superstar, including Rihanna showing support for her music and Ayra speaking openly about Rihanna’s influence on her career.
So when Rihanna’s post arrived with “Who’s Dat Girl” immediately after the Met Gala drama, the symbolism was simply too delicious for stan Twitter to ignore.
Then Tyla released APOP on July 24.
Among the tracks on the album was “THAT GIRL.”
Ordinarily, another song title would mean absolutely nothing.
But this is the Ayra Starr-Tyla timeline.
Ayra already had “Who’s Dat Girl.”
Tyla now had “THAT GIRL.”
And suddenly, fans had another reason to drag out the comparison.
Then came another detail that sent the detectives back to work: fans began pointing to Tyla’s use of “coma coma”, a phrase strongly associated with Ayra Starr’s music and arguing that the similarities were becoming too convenient.
Was it intentional?
Was it coincidence?
Was it simply two African pop stars using similar expressions? Nobody outside the artist’s camps can say for certain.
But social media has already reached its verdict and now comes the part everybody is waiting for.
Ayra Starr’s Starr Girl era.
With Ayra’s third studio album arriving on August 14, anticipation has reached fever pitch. Ayra has described the project as part of her musical and personal evolution, with the album featuring artists including Zayn Malik, Wizkid, Leon Thomas, Theodora and others.
That means the stan war has now moved from Rihanna to numbers.
Tyla has already had her moment with APOP*. Now Ayra Starr is stepping into the ring with Starr Girl.
And because social media never lets anything breathe, fans are already asking: Will Ayra Starr finally outstream Tyla? Will Starr Girl outperform APOP? Will “Who’s Dat Girl” reclaim the conversation from “THAT GIRL”?
Or, perhaps the question everyone is secretly waiting for: Who is going to copy who next?
Tyla’s supporters insist their girl is already a global Grammy winning superstar and has nothing to prove. Ayra’s fans, meanwhile, believe the Nigerian singer has been quietly building her own international lane and Rihanna’s public cosign only made that clearer.
The insults have already started flying across social media, with both fanbases accusing the other side of forcing a rivalry that the two singers themselves have not publicly confirmed.
Ironically, Ayra has previously described Tyla as a friend and urged fans not to pit women in music against each other.
But the fans? They clearly did not get the memo because now that “Who’s Dat Girl” has met “THAT GIRL,” and Tyla’s APOP* has met Ayra’s Starr Girl, the internet has turned this into an unofficial African pop championship.
And tomorrow, when Starr Girl finally arrives, the only thing louder than the music may be the fan wars.
The Rihanna chapter started it. The “girl” titles escalated it. Now the numbers may decide it.