Dua Lipa
File:200126 Dua Lipa on the 2020 Grammys Red Carpet.jpg Lipa at the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards (2020)
Born	(1995-08-22) 22 August 1995 (age 28) London, England
Nationality	British
Occupations	Singer songwriter model
Years active	2014–present
Awards	Full list
Musical career
Genres	Pop disco house R&B
Instrument(s)	Vocals
Labels	Warner Vertigo
Website	dualipa.com
Signature

Dua Lipa (/ˈduːə ˈliːpə/; Albanian pronunciation: [ˈdua ˈlipa]; born 22 August 1995) is an English singer and songwriter. After working as a model, she signed with Warner Bros. Records in 2014 and released her eponymous debut album in 2017. The album peaked at number three on the UK Albums Chart, and yielded eight singles, including "Be the One", "IDGAF", and the UK number-one single "New Rules", which also peaked at number six in the US. The album has achieved platinum status worldwide. In 2018, Lipa won the Brit Awards for best British Female Solo Artist and British Breakthrough Act.

Her 2018 single "One Kiss" with Calvin Harris peaked at number one in the UK and became the longest-running number-one single for a female artist in 2018. It won her the 2019 Brit Award for Song of the Year. In 2019, she won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist, and her Silk City-collaboration "Electricity" won the Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording. Her second studio album, Future Nostalgia (2020), received critical acclaim and garnered her six Grammy nominations, including Album of the Year, Record of the Year and Song of the Year. It became her first UK number-one album, with four top-ten singles including "Physical" and "Break My Heart". Its lead single "Don't Start Now" peaked at number two in the UK and US, and number four on the US Hot 100-year-ender chart, becoming the most successful 2020 song by a female artist in the US. The single "Levitating" peaked in the top-five in the US and UK.

Lipa has received multiple accolades, including three Grammy Awards, three Brit Awards, two MTV Europe Music Awards, one MTV Video Music Award, and an American Music Award. In 2020, Billboard honoured Lipa with the Powerhouse Award, awarded to the act whose music dominated in their respective year through streaming, sales, and radio. In 2021, Lipa was included on Time's 100 Next list about the future 100 most influential people in the world.

Early life

Dua Lipa was born on 22 August 1995 in London,^[2] the eldest child of Kosovo Albanians Dukagjin Lipa and Anesa Lipa (née Rexha) from Pristina, Yugoslavia (present-day Kosovo^[a]).^[3][4] Her family is of Muslim background^[5] and they trace their descent back to Peja.^[6] Her maternal grandfather, Iljaz Rexha is a well renown historian, while her paternal grandfather, Seit Lipa was once the Director of the Institute of History in Prishtina, Kosovo. ^[7][8] Lipa's parents travelled to London in 1992, around the time the siege of Sarajevo occurred,^[4][9][10] settling in a refugee community from their home country in Camden.^[11][12] Her father was pursuing a career in dentistry and later studied marketing, worked for a production company operating music festivals, such as Glastonbury and Reading.^[11][13][14] Her mother had studied law, and after emigrating to London she dedicated herself to tourism.^[13] Lipa grew up in West Hampstead, London.^[11][14] Lipa was influenced by the musical influences of her father,^[15][16][17] who was the lead singer and guitarist of the Kosovan rock band Oda.^[10][11][14] Her father continued to play music at home, including his own compositions and songs of artists such as David Bowie, Bob Dylan, Radiohead, Sting, The Police and Stereophonics.^[16][17][18] Lipa started singing at the age of five.^[19]

Early on, she was inspired by the albums Whoa, Nelly! (2000) by Nelly Furtado and Missundaztood (2001) by Pink, which she declared "a significant part of her life" and which hold "special meaning" for her,^[17][18] as well as Christina Aguilera, Destiny's Child, Kendrick Lamar, Chance the Rapper, Schoolboy Q, ASAP Rocky, Prince, Blondie, Jamiroquai, Moloko, Missy Elliott and Madonna.^{[15][20][21][22][23]} She attended Fitzjohn's Primary School,^[24][25] where her music lessons included the cello, though she found it unsuitable due to her small stature.^[4] When she auditioned to enter the school choir, she was rejected because her voice was "too low" to reach the high notes and the teacher told her that "she could not sing".^[4][16][26] At the age of nine, she began weekend singing lessons at the Sylvia Young Theatre School, where her teacher, Ray, helped her develop her vocals and discover her desire to become a singer.^[4][9] She said that when she was 9 years old "he saw something" in her and made her sing in front of older students, which increased her self-confidence.^[27] At the age of eleven, after finishing primary school, Lipa and her family moved back to Pristina after Kosovo declared independence.^[9][19]

Move to Pristina

Her move to the capital of Kosovo was motivated by her father, Dukagjin,^[9] a marketing entrepreneur, who – shortly after settling in Pristina, specifically in the Bregu i Diellit neighborhood where he had grown up – founded a communications agency for marketing.^[14][28] Lipa looked forward to the move and, upon arrival in Kosovo, was "fascinated" by the feeling of "community" and "safeness" she felt in the capital.^[9] She soon felt comfortable in her new environs, with the support of several acquaintances of her mother who frequently came to visit them in London together with their children, whose school in Kosovo she attended at her parents’ behest so that they could feel more "comfortable".^[9] Lipa did not have much difficulty with the local language either, because Albanian is her first language and she spoke it at home with her parents since she was a child, although she could not write or read it fluently.^[9][26][29] She stressed that the city is "way safer" than London because she could walk alone to school without being accompanied by adults. She attended the Mileniumi i Tretë school in Pristina,^[30] where she learned more about the Albanian language and participated in various concert activities that helped her reaffirm her idea of starting a musical career.^[31][32]

She was also put in a class with children two years older than her because students in Kosovo start school later than in the United Kingdom.^[9] She learned about the Kosovo War; although her family was not affected, that was not the case with her classmates and closest friends whose situation she described as "really sad" and "horrible".^[9] Lipa's arrival in Kosovo coincided with the arrival of rap artists from North America who were performing in the country; thus she was also influenced by this style of music.^[9] Additionally, her father was involved in the production of several of those concerts thru his job at a telecommunications agency. As a result, the first concert that she attended was Method Man & Redman. She also had the opportunity to attend concerts by Snoop Dogg, Busta Rhymes, and 50 Cent, whom she was particularly enamored with at the time and described his performance as the most memorable she had ever attended.^[9][20][33] Her time in Kosovo helped Lipa determine that its smaller music industry might not match the type of music career that she wanted to jump-start.^[9] She hoped for a music career on more of a "global scale", and therefore decided to move back to London.^[9]

Return to London

Lipa's parents felt more confident to allow her return to London without them when a daughter of one of their acquaintances also intended to move to the city to complete her master's degree.^[12][34] On her return to the city, aged 15, she stayed in Kilburn, where she lived for some time before moving to Camden, and began her secondary education at Parliament Hill School where she achieved her A-Levels in Politics, Psychology, English and Media and in turn re-entered Sylvia Young Theatre School part-time.^[34] She claimed that her parents did not push her to get involved with music, however, she decided not to have a higher education in university so that she could focus only on music.^[35] At the age of 14, she wrote her first song, "Lions & Tigers & Bears", inspired by The Wizard of Oz (1939),^[36] which she published on her SoundCloud page as her first demo in February 2012.^[37] She has stated that she was influenced by the discovery of Justin Bieber on YouTube which inspired her to take the same route.^[10][38] Her first job was in retail when she was 16 years old, as well as on the doorstep of nightclubs.^[28] Lipa also combined her musical vocation with various occupations to pay the rent for her apartment,^[3] working as a waitress at the Mexican restaurant La Bodega Negra in Soho,^[34] as a hostess at a nightclub in Mayfair and as a model for the ASOS Marketplace virtual catalogue.^[23][34]

Within what was her modelling career, an agency insisted that she had to lose weight to do catwalk shows, something she refused to do for the reason that she was modelling only to gain contacts that would help her with her goal of starting a musical career.^[35][39] This period of her life would later inspire her 2016 single "Blow Your Mind (Mwah)".^[26][40] She began posting her videos of her covers of songs like "If I Ain't Got You" (2004) by Alicia Keys and "Beautiful" (2002) by Christina Aguilera on YouTube.^[19] Although her videos did not reach great popularity,^[10] she took a "portfolio" to London clubs like KOKO where she thought she would meet people from the music industry who she could show them to.^[12] Though Lipa did not intend to become a model she nonetheless got involved with Topshop, hoping "that could help her get out there".^[12] She signed with a modelling agency, helping her land a role as a "singer" in an ITV advertisement for The X Factor in 2013 where she covered the song "Lost in Music" (1979).^[41][42] That role introduced her to a producer who at the time worked with One Direction and Ed Sheeran, which led to an offer for a publishing contract. She needed to get a lawyer for signing of the contract who in turn introduced her to Ben Mawson, a Warner Bros. manager and Lana Del Rey's representative at the time.^[3]

Mawson earned her a management deal with TAP Management which put her in touch with several producers, including Emile Haynie, Andrew Wyatt and Stephen Kozmeniuk, to learn the fundamental of the songwriter trade.^[34] At first, she was more interested in "discovering" her sound than in landing a record deal; she wanted to have a sound like a cross between rapper J. Cole and Nelly Furtado, but the reaction of the producers was not exactly positive.^[18][34] But then when she wrote "Hotter Than Hell" and production at the time was just a piano and a kick drum, she claimed that she liked the "darkness" behind it, the pop chorus with a "rappy" flow to the verses, all sung in a lower register.^[18][34] That song was the one that helped her land a record deal, which she signed in 2014 with Warner Bros. Records.^[43][44] Her first single, "New Love" was released late August of that same year and received rave reviews,^[34] such as Lindsey Weber's review for The Fader in which she argued that it is "surprisingly heavy, with a throbbing heartbeat that underlines her voice, which is husky and mature, like that of Joss Stone or Lady Gaga."^[39] However, to achieve public recognition it was necessary to wait for the release of her next single, "Be the One" in October 2015.^[34]

We've seen artists who might get half a good song out of 10 writing sessions; with Dua, one in five or one in four is a banger. She gets results out of other people as well, because her personality is so engaging and she is so charismatic. She definitely has that special something.

— Ben Mawson on Lipa's songwriting^[45]

Career

2013–2018: Career beginnings and Dua Lipa

In 2013, Lipa signed a contract with Tap Management, directed by Ben Mawson and Ed Millett, while working as a waitress in a cocktail bar. Lipa was introduced to Mawson by her lawyer, who discouraged her from signing another publishing deal that was offered to her.^{[citation needed]} Subsequently, they offered her a monthly salary to leave her job and focus on recording music.^[46] During one of the sessions, Lipa co-wrote the song "Hotter than Hell",^[46] which would eventually lead to her signing a record deal with Warner Bros. Records in 2014.^[43][44] Millett retrospectively elaborated: "Dua was really smart – she signed to Warner Bros. partly because they didn't have a big female pop artist and they needed one. They really wanted her, so she had the focus of the team from day one."^[46] In August 2015, Lipa released her first single "New Love",^[47] produced by Emile Haynie and Andrew Wyatt.^[39] Her second single, "Be the One", was issued to European success in October 2015,^[48][49] reaching number one in Belgium,^[50] Poland and Slovakia, as well as charting within the top ten in over eleven European territories. In Australia and New Zealand, the song became an airplay success, reaching numbers 6 and 20 respectively.^[51] In November 2015, she was revealed as one of the acts on the BBC Sound of... 2016 long list.^[52] Her first tour in the UK and Europe began in January 2016,^[53] and concluded in November 2016.^[54]

On 18 February 2016, Lipa released her third single "Last Dance", followed by "Hotter than Hell" on 6 May. The latter reached success, particularly in the UK, where it peaked at number 15.^[55] On 26 August, her fifth overall single "Blow Your Mind (Mwah)" was released, peaking at number 30 in the UK.^[55] It became the singer's first entry on the US Billboard Hot 100, debuting at number 72.^[56] The song also topped the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart^[57] and reached number 23 on the Billboard Mainstream Top 40 chart.^[58] Lipa was featured on Sean Paul's single "No Lie", released in November 2016,^[59] which reached number ten in the UK.^[60] The following month, a documentary about Lipa named See in Blue was commissioned by The Fader magazine.^[61] In January 2017, Lipa won the EBBA Public Choice Award,^[62] and released the single "Scared to Be Lonely", a collaboration with Martin Garrix, reaching number 14 in the UK.^[63] In May 2017, she performed at the anniversary of Indonesian television channel SCTV and was awarded as Young and Promising International Artist at the SCTV Music Awards.^[64][65]

Lipa's self-titled debut studio album was released on 2 June 2017.^[66] Its sixth single, "New Rules", released in the following month, became Lipa's first number one in the UK,^[55] and the first by a female solo artist to reach the top in the UK since Adele's "Hello" in 2015.^[67] Her best-selling single to date, the song also charted in the top ten of other countries, including number two in Australia, number six in the US, and number seven in Canada.^[68] Lipa performed at the Glastonbury Festival in June.^[69] The following month, Lipa performed at the We the Fest, an Indonesian music festival in Jakarta.^[70] She performed on BBC's Later... with Jools Holland in October.^[71] In December, Lipa was named the most streamed woman of 2017 in the UK by Spotify.^[72] She had four singles reach the UK top 10 in 2017, with "Be the One", "New Rules", "No Lie", and "Bridge over Troubled Water", a charity single for the families of the victims of the Grenfell Tower fire in London.^[73]

In January 2018, Lipa received nominations in five categories at the Brit Awards, more nominations than any other artist that year. She was nominated for MasterCard British Album of the Year for Dua Lipa, British Single of the Year and British Video of the Year for "New Rules", British Female Solo Artist, and British Breakthrough Act, winning the latter two.^[74] This was the first time that a female artist had received five nominations.^[75][76] She performed at the awards ceremony held on 21 February at the O2 Arena in London.^[74]

The singer collaborated with American DJ Whethan on the song "High" for the Fifty Shades Freed soundtrack, released in February 2018.^[77] She started working on new material for her second album in March 2018.^[78] On 6 April, Lipa and Calvin Harris released the single "One Kiss",^[79] which topped the UK Singles Chart on 20 April, making it Lipa's second number one in the chart;^[80] Lipa provided the vocals and is also credited as a writer. The single went on to become the biggest selling song in the UK of 2018 and topped the chart for eight consecutive weeks.^[81] She performed in the opening ceremony of the 2018 UEFA Champions League Final in Kyiv on 26 May.^[82] It was reported that Lipa would be releasing collaborations with other artists coming out later in 2018, such as one with Mark Ronson and Diplo's newly formed superduo Silk City.^[83] Ronson later confirmed the song's title would be "Electricity".^[84] The song was released on 9 September. Lipa was also featured in "If Only", a song from Italian singer Andrea Bocelli's sixteenth studio album Sì.^[85]

Lipa performed at F1 Singapore Grand Prix in September.^[86] In the same month, Lipa indorsed British car brand Jaguar's new electric car, I-PACE. The brand created a remix of Lipa's song "Want To", and launched a service where fans could create their own version of Dua Lipa x Jaguar's song on the Join the Pace website, based on their own driving behaviour or the music they listen to, and share it on social media. According to Lipa's team, Jaguar and Lipa set the world record for the "most remixed song ever."^[87] In October, the singer released Dua Lipa: The Complete Edition, an expanded version of her debut album that includes three new songs, including the aforementioned "Want To", and her previous collaborations with other artists.^[88] This included a collaboration with South Korean girl group Blackpink called "Kiss and Make Up".^[89]

2019–present: Future Nostalgia

In January 2019, Lipa released the single "Swan Song" as part of the soundtrack to the 2019 film Alita: Battle Angel.^[90][91] That same month, Lipa stated that she had been spending the preceding year in the writing process for her second studio album.^[92] While discussing the album's sound, Lipa commented that it would be a "nostalgic" pop record that "feels like a dancercise class".^[93] In August 2019, Lipa partnered with brand Yves Saint Laurent to indorse their fragrance Libre.^[94]

Following the release of its lead single "Don't Start Now", Lipa's second album, Future Nostalgia, and its accompanying tour were announced in December 2019.^[95][96][97] "Don't Start Now" peaked at number two on both the UK Singles Chart and the US Billboard Hot 100.^[60][56][98] It also peaked at number one on the US Billboard Mainstream Top 40 chart.^[99] Lipa's second single leading up to the release of the album was "Physical".^[100] It was released on 30 January 2020 and the song's music video was released a day later.^[100] "Physical" debuted at number 60 on the US Billboard Hot 100.^[101] Future Nostalgia was released on 27 March to widespread critical acclaim,^[102] following the release of the record's third single "Break My Heart" on 25 March.^[103] The album debuted at number two on the Official UK Albums Chart, 5550 copies behind 5 Seconds of Summer's Calm.^[104] Future Nostalgia peaked at number one on the Official UK Albums Chart the following week in April 2020, while four of the album's singles entered the top ten of the Official Singles Chart.^[105] The album holds the record for having the lowest one-week sales while at the top of the chart in the modern era, when it was number one the week beginning 15 May 2020 with sales of only 7,317.^[106] At the time of the album's release, Lipa became the first British female artist since Vera Lynn to have three top-ten singles in a single calendar year, with Lynn having three in 1952.^[107] Lipa eventually overrode this record with the single "Levitating", which also peaked within the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, becoming her third top-ten in the US overall.

On 11 August 2020, she was named global ambassador of the French mineral water brand Évian. The announcement was made by Lipa on social media in which she stated that "it had been an honor" working with the brand.^[108] On 13 August, Lipa released a remix of "Levitating" featuring American artists Madonna and Missy Elliott.^[109] It served as the lead single from Club Future Nostalgia, a remix collection of Future Nostalgia tracks by The Blessed Madonna and Mark Ronson, which was released on 28 August.^[110]

On 2 October 2020, Lipa released the second remix of "Levitating" featuring American rapper DaBaby, alongside the music video on the same day.^[111] On 14 October 2020, Lipa and Belgian singer Angèle were photographed on the set of a music video.^[112] Later in the month, the singers announced the release of their collaboration, "Fever"; it was released on 30 October 2020.^[113] It is included on the French re-release of Future Nostalgia.^[114] Lipa was featured on "Prisoner", a song from Miley Cyrus' seventh studio album Plastic Hearts. The single was released on 19 November 2020 alongside the music video.^[115] In November it was announced that Lipa would be the musical guest on 19 December episode of Saturday Night Live.^[116] On 27 November, Lipa performed in a livestream concert titled Studio 2054, where she sang various songs from Future Nostalgia, a new unreleased track with FKA Twigs, as well as some previous singles such as "New Rules", "One Kiss" and "Electricity". The event featured many special guests like The Blessed Madonna, Angèle, Kylie Minogue and Elton John, amongst others.^[117]

Future Nostalgia was the most streamed album by a woman (and fifth most streamed album overall) on Spotify in 2020.^[118]

On 12 January 2021, Lipa was interviewed in a session at CES hosted by Ryan Seacrest regarding online digital performances.^[119][120] On 11 February 2021, Lipa released a single titled "We're Good", along with Future Nostalgia: The Moonlight Edition.^[121][122]

Artistry

Lipa possesses a mezzo-soprano vocal range.^{[123][124][125]} Her music is primarily pop, and has also been described as disco, house and R&B.^{[126][127][128]} Stylistically, her music has been described as dance-pop,^[129] synth-pop, R&B,^[128] dream pop^[53] alternative pop,^[130] and nu-disco subgenres.^[131] Lipa herself describes her musical style as "dark pop".^[49][132] She is also noted for singing in a "distinct, husky, low register",^[133] and her "sultry" tone.^[134] Regarding her songwriting process, Lipa states she usually comes to the studio with a concept and starts developing the song with her co-writers.^[35][135] She cites Kylie Minogue, Pink, Nelly Furtado, Jamiroquai, Kendrick Lamar and Chance the Rapper amongst her musical influences.^{[136][137][138]} "My idea of pop has been P!nk and Christina Aguilera and Destiny's Child and Nelly Furtado," said Lipa in a GQ interview in 2018.^[139] Her second studio album Future Nostalgia (2020) was inspired by artists that she listened to during her teens, including Gwen Stefani, Madonna, Moloko, Blondie and Outkast.^[140]

Fashion

Lipa has been the cover girl of several magazines.^[142] She signed with Next Models.^{[143][144][145]} She was in the cover of "Boom Boom Thick" editorial for Elle's January 2016 issue.^[146][147] She appeared in the ninth issue of Wylde magazine for February 2016.^[148][149] She modelled for an editorial of Stella McCartney, published on 23 February 2016.^[150][151] In April 2016 she was again in an editorial of Elle.^[3][152] She was in the editorial for the Fall/Winter 2016 issue of Redmilk magazine.^[153] She was in a supplement cover of British Vogue in November 2016.^[21][154] She starred an editorial for the January 2017 issue of V.^[155] In the same month, she was in the cover for issue 102 of Clash.^[156][157] In March 2017, she became a global ambassador for the American shoe company, Foot Locker, to present women's collections offered by the brand.^[158][159] She was in an editorial for Interview released in April 2017.^[160][161] She modelled for an editorial of Paper, published on 6 June 2017.^[162][163] She was featured in the summer 2017 issue of Teen Vogue in an editorial titled "Fine Tuned".^[164][165] She was in an editorial for June 2017 issue of InStyle.^[166][167] She was in an editorial called "Game Changers" for Fall 2017 issue of V.^[168][169] She was the protagonist of the Fall/Winter 2017-18 advertizing campaign of the Italian brand Patrizia Pepe,^[170][171] as well as recorded a cover of the song "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" (1966) as a soundtrack for the commercial for the said campaign.^[172] She was in the cover and an editorial for November 2017 issue of Evening Standard.^[173][174] In the same month, she released her second collaboration with the brand Foot Locker for autumn/winter collection.^[175][176] In January 2018, she was part of a promotional clip for an Adidas Originals campaign called "Original Is Never Finished".^[177] She starred the cover of April 2018 issue of Teen Vogue.^[178] She was one of the covers for issue 113 of V entitled "The Music Issue", published in May 2018 as a limited edition.^[179][180] She partnered with the fashion brand Nyden on a project to create four clothing collections, but it subsequently failed and Lipa "discontinued" her work with the brand.^[181][182]

She was in the cover of British GQ for May 2018 issue.^[183][184] She was in the cover for May 2018 issue of Turkish edition of Vogue.^[185][186] She was in the cover for June 2018 issue of British edition of Elle.^[187][188] In October 2018, she was part of an Adidas campaign called "Here to Create" in which she wore brand clothes.^[189] She appeared in a Billboard editorial called "Grammy Preview" alongside Post Malone and Ella Mai.^[190][191] She starred the cover for January 2019 issue of British Vogue and an editorial called "Youth Quake".^[192][193] She was the image for the Pepe Jeans London spring/summer 2019 collection campaign, settling down as the first musician to be global ambassador for the brand.^[194][195] Months later, she launched her first-ever capsule with the same brand for the autumn/winter collection where she designed clothing inspired by the fashion of the 90s and early 2000s and whose decades she spent part of her childhood in London and remembered her mother talking to her in a Pepe Jeans store in Portobello Road;^[196] the collection included chain mail dresses, "casual" denim outfits and garments based on Lipa's "style" released in September 2019.^[196][197] She was in the cover for May 2019 issue of Elle.^[27][198] She starred one of the four covers in the first issue and an editorial of the re-launch of The Face released in September 2019.^[199][200] She was the cover girl of the October 2019 issue and an editorial for the Spanish edition of Vogue.^[201][202] She starred in a Vogue sitcom clip set in the 90s titled "Dua's World" where she wore the "best" collections of New York Fashion Week.^[203][204] She released her second design collaboration with Pepe Jeans London for spring/summer 2020 collection inspired by the fashion of late 1980s and early 1990s whose collection included "oversized" blazers, cropped knitwear, bodycon dresses and "metallic" miniskirts.^[205][206] She was in the cover and an editorial called "True to form" for April 2020 issue of Vogue Australia.^{[207][208][209]}

She appeared in a Rolling Stone editorial published in April 2020 to discuss about her second studio album Future Nostalgia (2020).^[210][211] She starred the cover of Elle May 2020 issue and an editorial titled "Dua Lipa Gets Physical",^{[212][213][214]} and months later she was in the cover for its Canadian and British edition.^[215][216] She was the cover girl for June 2020 issue of GQ on its British edition.^[217][218] She starred one of two covers for W magazine's "The Music Issue" published in September 2020.^[219][220] Lipa released her third design collaboration with Pepe Jeans London for autumn/winter 2020 collection and she stated that it would be her last collaboration with the brand called "Denim decades", which was inspired by every decade since Pepe Jeans started selling denim.^[221][222] In November 2020, she signed a multi-year partnership with Puma becoming the female global ambassador of the brand.^[223][224] She was in the cover for December 2020 issue of Attitude.^[225] She starred the cover for February 2021 issue of British Vogue.^[226][227] In the same month, she was protagonist of the cover for issue 1348 of Rolling Stone.^[12][228] She was the cover image for March 2021 issue of Time, representing the 100 Next list about the "future 100 most influential people in the world".^[229][230] In the same month, she starred on the cover of The New York Times "Music Issue".^[231] Her outfit at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards red carpet featured a dress designed by herself in collaboration with the brand Versace inspired by the Aurora Borealis.^[232][233] She protagonised a Puma brand campaign called "She Moves Us" in which she designed a shoe called "Mayze" inspired by "the past" that will be released in April 2021.^[234]

Dress style

For a Versace dress and Bulgari diamonds she was rated as one of the "best" dressed celebrities of the 61st Annual Grammy Awards ceremony by various media such as Harper's Bazaar,^[235] Refinery29,^[236] USA Today,^[237] People^[238] and Marie Claire.^[239] For her Alexander Wang dress with 90s style she was rated as one of the "best" dressed celebrities of the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony by various media such as Harper's Bazaar,^[240] Vogue,^[241] Los Angeles Times,^[242] The Cut,^[243] Glamour,^[244] Elle,^[245] Cosmopolitan,^[246] Entertainment Tonight,^[247] CNN,^[248] Refinery29^[249] and People.^[250] For a Versace dress and Bulgari jewelry she was rated as one of the "best" dressed celebrities of the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony by various media such as Vogue,^[251] The Guardian,^[252] Glamour,^[253] Refinery29,^[254] GQ,^[255] Marie Claire,^[256] The Cut,^[257] Harper's Bazaar,^[258] Cosmopolitan,^[259] Us Weekly,^[260] The Independent,^[261] USA Today,^[262] Elle,^[263] HuffPost,^[264] and Entertainment Tonight.^[265]

Product endorsements

She released a limited edition lip gloss called "Cremesheen Glass" in collaboration with MAC Cosmetics for its campaign called "Future Forward".^{[266][267][268]} She became the face of a perfume called "Libre" for a Yves Saint Laurent campaign launched in September 2019 for which she recorded a promo cover of the song "I'm Free" (1965) featured in advertisements for Lipa's campaigns with the brand.^{[269][270][271]} Later she was the face of a new version of the same perfume called "Libre Intense".^[272] She became an ambassador for the mineral water brand Évian in July 2020.^[273] In March 2021 she performed an a cappella of her song "Levitating" (2020) for an advertisement for the "Drink True" campaign of the brand Évian.^[274]

Philanthropy

Together with her father Dukagjin, she co-created the Sunny Hill Foundation in 2016 to raise funds to help people in Kosovo experiencing financial difficulties. In August 2018, she organised a festival to raise money for that foundation, called the Sunny Hill Festival. The then-Mayor of Pristina, Shpend Ahmeti, awarded her the Pristina Key, the first time one had been awarded.^[275] Lipa went on to host the festival for the second year in 2019, with Miley Cyrus included as part of the performer line-up.^[276] In mid-November 2018, Lipa was part of a campaign organised by UNICEF called "Go Blue" in support of children's rights, on the occasion of World Children's Day (20 November).^[277] Her contribution consisted of a short video about dressing in blue or displaying the colour blue, with her in a studio re-recording the lyrics of her song "Be the One" (2015). She changed the word "red" to "blue" in the song for the occasion.^[278][279] In December 2018, Lipa participated in a benefit concert for the Ellie Goulding's "Streets of London" annual charity event at Wembley Arena, which "funds specialist support for people who are homeless in London and raises awareness about homelessness."^[280][281] In April 2019, she became an UNICEF supporter during a three-day visit to a camp for refugee children and youth in Beirut, Lebanon.^[282] The camp included many uprooted by the conflict in Syria who did not have "adequate" health care or education and Lipa also visited young Palestinians and Syrians in Bourj el-Barajneh refugee camp.^[283] She subsequently supported a campaign by her management company with a plan to raise £100,000 to help raise awareness of charities such as The Black Dog and CALM.^[284]

She asked for a better mental health care for artists in creative industries, as she was "shocked" to read that "suicide rates amongst women working in the arts are almost 70% higher than in the world population". Lipa described mental health as the "issue of our generation".^[285] On 26 November 2019, following the 2019 Albania earthquake, Lipa asked fans for donations and support for victims.^[286][287] To raise funds she co-released a limited edition line of t-shirts called "Pray for Albania" in collaboration with Albanian fashion designers. All proceeds went to families and victims affected by the seismic event.^[288][289] On 15 March 2020, she asked her fans to make donations to the UNHCR agency to deal with COVID-19 pandemic because refugees are "the most vulnerable on this planet" and they "often live in crowded places" with "limited health services."^[290][291] In the same month, she was part of a television special called "Home Fest" on The Late Late Show with James Corden From His Garage with the goal of raising money for CDC and Feed the Children where she performed her song, "Don't Start Now" (2019), from an apartment in London.^[292] On 16 May 2020, she did a live performance of her song "Break My Heart" (2020) on the television special Graduate Together: America Honors the High School Class of 2020 aimed at the high school students whose graduation ceremonies and proms were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[293] At the end of May 2020, she participated in a digital event called "Dream With Us" with the aim of raising funds,^[294] whose event consisted of a streaming concert at which a portion of proceeds would go to organisations that help fight the disease of COVID-19.^[295]

She was part of a charitable project organised for BBC Radio 1 for a cover of the song "Times Like These" released on 23 April 2020 in the segment Live Lounge.^[296] She was part of the charity supergroup Live Lounge Allstars in which each member recorded and filmed their contribution to the song from their respective households in order to encourage social distancing in which profits from the single would primarily go to Children in Need and Comic Relief, as well as COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund.^[297] She used social media to promove Lebanese citizens to donate blood to victims affected by the 2020 Beirut explosion.^[298] She donated 5,000 euros to the Theatre of Dodona so that the venue could have its own ticket system and website.^[299] She was part of an initiative organised by Belgian singer Angèle and KickCancer Foundation to fund research against childhood cancer, and it was about a charity raffle in which Lipa offered a manuscript of her song "Don't Start Now" (2019) as a prise.^[300][301] She will perform at 2021 Elton John AIDS Foundation Academy Award Party virtually to raise funds and benefit the AIDS Foundation to combat HIV disease, whose event will start on 25 April.^[302][303]

Activism and advocacy

Lipa identifies as a feminist.^[304] She stated that she espoused her feminist reasoning with facts that she read in books such as Bad Feminist (2014) by Roxane Gay, The Beauty Myth (1990) by Naomi Wolf and Men Explain Things to Me (2014) by Rebecca Solnit.^[305] She has spoken out against sexism within the music industry, using social media to raise awareness of women's problems.^[304][207] Lipa has advocated for the social equality amongst the LGBT community.^[306] On 12 February 2018, she raised a rainbow flag while performing her song "Be the One" in a presentation at the Hollywood Palladium in the city of Los Angeles as part of The Self-Titled tour.^[307] On the 2018 Brit Awards red carpet she wore a white rose dress in support of Time's Up movement,^[308][309] additionally at the same event she stated in her acceptance speech for an award her delight of having "women present in these stages" and more "women winning awards."^[310] On 12 March 2018, she waved an LGBT flag while performing "Blow Your Mind (Mwah)" at a concert at the Palais Theatre of Melbourne.^[311] She pointed out the importance of the Me Too movement, claiming that even though she never suffered sexual harassment in her life, she grew up experimenting with "kiss chase".^[183] She also repudiated catcalling because she describes it as a behaviour that "affects your mood" and that "makes people get embarrassed about the way they dress".^[183] About sexism in the music industry, she claims that it is harder for female musicians "to be taken seriously if you're not sat down at a piano or with a guitar" unlike male artists, who people think that "they write their own music and for women they assume it's all manufactured."^[310][183] She expressed her views on women's rights in Saudi Arabia in a tweet due to the 2017–2018 lifting ban on women driving by Salman of Saudi Arabia, whose policy would not come into effect until June 2018, a fact which she described as "a step towards equality."^[312] She explained that her perception of feminism is not about misandry but demanding the same opportunities.^[313]

In September 2018, some fans were removed by security from a Lipa concert in the National Exhibition and Convention Center of Shanghai for allegedly waving rainbow flags, despite homosexuality being decriminalised in China in 1997.^[315] In response, Lipa said she was "proud" of and "grateful" to the people who showed their pride at the show.^[316] At the 61st Annual Grammy Awards, Lipa used her award speech to pay homage to the female artists nominated in the categories and said, "I guess this year we've really stepped up," which was an allusion to The Recording Academy former president's previous suggestion, Neil Portnow, about that women should "step up" to be recognised within the music industry.^[310][317] She participated in a short film for an initiative called "Global Feminism", directed by The Circle of Annie Lennox in association with Apple Music and released on 7 March 2019 ahead of International Women's Day. The clip intended to raise awareness of misogyny, rape, and violence against women, and featured Lipa showing a statistic that alleges that "1 in 3 women and girls are impacted by physical or sexual violence in their lifetime."^[318] In April 2019, she showed her support for LGBT rights in Brunei by calling for the boycott against the hotel industries of the then Sultan of Brunei, Hassanal Bolkiah, after a penal code that punishes homosexuality with death came into force in Brunei.^[319] In May 2019, Lipa spoke out in favour of abortion rights in the United States when she did not agree with the approval of Alabama abortion ban; she asserted that "no man should be making such a fundamental decision on a woman's body" while wondering "how abortion gets banned before guns" and proclaiming "solidarity" with her "sisters."^[320] Three months later, she showed her support for a campaign called "Bans Off My Body" organised by Planned Parenthood against the restrictions on abortion in the United States.^[321] Her promotional single, "Future Nostalgia" (2019), discuss themes of feminism and self-reflection.^[322][323] In her criteria, she agreed with the use of social media because it's an "amazing" tool but at the same time "a breeding ground for hate and anxiety".^[324]

Lipa was the headliner party host for the 2020 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade and she was part of the parade,^[325] before performing several songs.^[326][327] After 62nd Annual Grammy Awards she along with Rosalía and Lil Nas X attended a Lizzo's after-party at Crazy Girls strip club in Los Angeles, where she threw money at strippers which generated backlash on social media.^[5][328] Lipa was accused of being "anti-feminist" and contributing to a job that "literally allows you to objectify women."^[329] In response to the critics, Lipa maintained that she "believe[s] in supporting women in all fields of work", adding that "everyone was having fun" at the event and "nothing at that party was derogatory" and she also received support from fans.^[330][331] Her song "Boys Will Be Boys" (2020) lyrically illustrate the male violence,^[332] sexual harassment,^[333] toxic masculinity,^[334] double standards,^[335] misoginy,^[336] empowerment and feminism themes.^[337][338] In May 2020, she named Hassan Akkad a "national hero" for cleaning the wards at Whipps Cross Hospital and helping patients and National Health Service staff to deal with the COVID-19.^[339][340] She opposed police brutality in the United States in the wake of killing of George Floyd, affirming that any more generations of black Americans who grow up in fear of those who "should protect them" would no longer be tolerated.^[341] Lipa has also shown support for the Black Lives Matter movement,^[342] and on 3 June 2020, she attended a BLM protest in Hyde Park, London with her family in the wake of the George Floyd protests.^[343] That same month, in an Instagram post, she quoted the hashtag #BlackTransLivesMatter.^[344] In July 2020 she signed an open letter to the UK government being received by the then Minister for Women and Equalities, Liz Truss, to request the banning of conversion therapy.^[345] She shown in favour of universal health care wondering why people weren't protesting about it, in addition to stating that she and her country of birth, United Kingdom, consider National Health Service as a "right".^[346]

In November of the same year, she spoke against cancel culture calling it "toxic" and "dangerous".^[347] In the same month, she expressed being agreed with a campaign in favour of abortion in Argentina which had the purpose of provoking the legalisation of the Voluntary Interruption of Pregnancy Bill.^[348][349] One month later, during the Billboard Women in Music she used her Powerhouse Award acceptance speech to highlight that women "still have a lot to do for real equality" in which she also complained about the "lack of diversity" amongst the artists of the Billboard Hot 100 and asked the continued encouragement to "all the young girls out there to be the powerhouses of the future."^[310] On 22 January 2021, she took to Instagram story to recommend her followers to watch Jasmila Žbanić's film Quo Vadis, Aida? (2020), which deals with the topic of the Srebrenica genocide, stating that it had "moved her to tears and made her reflect on so many heartbreaking stories she had been told growing up."^[350] In February 2021, she asked her Instagram followers to watch the Blerta Basholli's film Hive (2021), a movie with a storey related to Kosovo War for which she was "extremely proud" that it won the main three awards at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival.^[351] She supported a campaign carried out by the brand Yves Saint Laurent called "Abuse Is Not Love" against intimate partner violence.^[352]

Political views and controversies

Lipa called the 2016 U.K. European Union membership referendum result as "devastating news".^[9] In January 2018, she sparked her first controversy when a cover of the song "Smoke, Drink, Break-Up" she recorded in 2014 resurfaced on YouTube where she can be heard saying the N-word with a distorted sound effect. Then, she clarified that she "never meant to offend or upset anyone," and that "a different word should have been used."^[353] In March 2018, New Zealand-Australian journalist Richard Wilkins criticised Lipa about the postponement of her participation as opening act in 2 concerts of the 24K Magic World Tour, pointing out that she was not "honest" about the cancelling reason, due to according to Wilkins she postponed the dates due to dental surgery and a week later she was able to perform on Jimmy Kimmel Live!.^[354] In response, Lipa clarified that the episode of TV show where she performed "was recorded in February and aired on March 20," which prompted Wilkins to apologise for being "misinformed", however, Lipa called Wilkins' comments "upsetting" and "dangerous."^[355] In July 2018, she complained about United Airlines' passenger health care on Twitter where she repudiated the airline's treatment of her sister's peanut allergy.^[356] Subsequently, the airline clarified that the safety of its passengers is its priority and they could not ensure an allergen-free space.^[357] She was critical of the construction of Donald Trump's border wall during his presidency in the United States, stating that later down the line would able "to see very clearly what went wrong by putting someone like Trump in power".^[5] In September 2018, she retweeted a commentary that highlighted "homophobic" and "discriminatory" quotes by the then-candidate for the presidency of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, adding the hashtag #EleNão, a social movement against his 2018 presidential campaign.^[358] On 27 September 2018, Brazilian model Liziane Gutiérrez said on Instagram that Lipa had expelled her from the VIP area of her Las Vegas concert for wearing a T-shirt with the hashtag #EleSim, symbolising support for Bolsonaro.^[359]

In November 2018, Lipa expressed dissatisfaction over the withdrawal of the U.K. from the European Union due to Brexit because according to her personal experience "no refugee leaves their country without having to".^[13] In June 2019 she made public her support for the ongoing Sudanese transition to democracy on social media sharing a blue image that showed the phrase "Stand with Sudan" where she detailed her rejection of Khartoum massacre writing about all "women, men and children fighting for a peaceful transition to democracy".^[360] She also described the event as: an attempt to "brutal murder and rape" by government forces those who try to call for democracy, a "violation of the freedom rights" of Sudanese citizens for blocking their internet and a "violation of human rights."^[360] On December of the same year, Lipa indorsed the Labour Party led by Jeremy Corbyn in the 2019 United Kingdom general election, comparing the policies of both Labour and Conservatives on various issues in social media and affirming that it was "the most important election in a generation".^[361] She characterised Boris Johnson's victory in the election as a "total disaster".^[362] On 3 March 2020, she urged Super Tuesday voters in the U.S. to pick Bernie Sanders as candidate for 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries.^[363] In June 2020, Lipa reposted, and later deleted, a post that criticised IDF's treatment on Palestinians, depicted Israeli Ground Forces detaining Palestinian minors,^[364] and branded the Israeli government people as "fake Jews" and the people of the federal government of the United States as "fake Christians" accusing them of having created Hamas for people to "believe that Hamas is the reasons for the decades worth of occupation, oppression, ethnic cleansing, and murder."^[365] Then an Im Tirtzu petition signed by thousands of Israelis was sent to the then-Minister of Defense, Benny Gantz, and Minister of Culture and Sport, Hili Tropper, to stop playing Lipa's songs on Army Radio and Galgalatz by her "anti-israel" and "antisemitist" repost full of "conspiracy theories" and "blood libel."^[366][367]

In response, Army Radio explained that "Galgalatz does not boycott any artist" and "the songs are chosen at the discretion of the editors of each segment."^[368][369] In July 2020, Lipa supported a campaign called "Let the Music Play" in which she signed an open letter sent to the then-Culture Secretary, Oliver Dowden, calling for support from the government of United Kingdom for the UK's live music industry's economic loss under the COVID-19 pandemic.^[370] On 18 July 2020, Lipa shared a post on her Instagram story explaining "why Kosovo is not and will never be Serbia", urging followers to sign a petition which asked Apple to include Kosovo in its mapping services as an independent nation.^[371] The next day, she published on her social media a banner containing an irredentist map of Greater Albania that reflected Albania, Kosovo, Serbia, Greece and North Macedonia as one nation appended with the definition of the word "autochthonous".^[372] As the image is commonly associated with extreme Albanian nationalism,^[372] she received a backlash on social media where she was accused of ethno-nationalism and fascism.^[373][374] Later, she stated that her post was "misinterpreted" by people who promote ethnic separatism, an ideology that she "completely rejects".^[375] In August, she urged her Instagram followers to vote against Trump in the 2020 US presidential election.^[376] British tabloid The Sun reported that Lipa "flouted" rules associated with the COVID-19 pandemic on 14 October 2020 at the shooting of the music video for her song "Fever" (2020), and whose set in Shoreditch was raided by the police after complaints from residents there. Lipa later denounced this by threatening to take legal action against the tabloid, which she did not mention so as not to give it "free publicity".^[377][378] The Sun subsequently issued an apology to Lipa for any distress they caused her, confirming that no COVID-19 rules were broken, and that the police were called due to an unrelated noise complaint.^[379]

In the same month, Lipa expressed support for Joe Biden to become U.S. president at a virtual event aimed at Albanian Americans, arguing that the Kosovars "owed" support to Biden because he was against the massacre and ethnic cleansing of Albanians by having supported NATO bombing of Yugoslavia.^[380] In November 2020, she commemorated Albanian independence by celebrating Flag Day stating that she was "proud to be Albanian".^[381] On 6 January 2021, Lipa expressed her dissatisfaction over the 2021 storming of the U.S. Capitol on her Instagram story, where she branded pro-Trump protestors "terrorists".^[382] She supported a petition sent by British musicians to the UK government to change its visa policy, specifically requesting to "negotiate a free cultural work permit that gives them visa-free travel throughout the then 27 EU states for music touring professionals, bands, musicians, artists, TV and sports celebrities that tour the EU to perform shows and events and carnet exception for touring equipment".^[383] In the same month, she published a call to her Instagram followers to encourage Kosovo citizens to vote in the 2021 Kosovan parliamentary election.^[384]

Impact

A study conducted by the Office for National Statistics revealed that the number of people born between England and Wales with the name "Dua" was 63 in 2017, after Lipa reached her first UK number one song with "New Rules" (2017) and whose amount increased to 126 in 2019.^[385][386] In May 2018, she was listed on British Vogue inaugural list of the 25 most influential British women of 2018 with Lipa being the youngest on the list at the age of 22, in its review praising her 2017 song "New Rules" as an "anthem of female empowerment [and] laid out a blueprint for modern sex lives", in addition to described her as a "culture definer".^[387][388] In February 2019, the first wax figure about Lipa was unveiled at the Madame Tussauds London inspired by her appearance of her performance at Glastonbury Festival 2017.^[389][390]

Two months later, a second wax figure sculpted about Lipa was unveiled at the Madame Tussauds Amsterdam in allusion of her performance at the 2018 Billboard Music Awards.^[391] Lyndsey Havens from Billboard credited Lipa as the protagonist on disco's revival in 2020 by her song "Don't Start Now" (2019).^[392] She inspired the French photographer, Hugo Comte, in his first photo-book.^[393] She was included in Time's 100 Next list on future 100 world's most influential people by Australian singer Kylie Minogue who in her review called Lipa a "shining star".^[229][230] Mark Sutherland and Jem Aswad from Variety rated Lipa as one of the most impactful women in the global entertainment industry.^[394]

Personal life

Her first name "Dua" was her grandmother's idea and means "love" in Albanian.^[19][395] Lipa's first language is Albanian^[9][26][29] and she also speaks English in British dialect.^{[396][397][12]} She stands at 1.73 metres tall and her shoe size is 6 (UK).^[397][398] She has accumulated 17 tattoos on her body since 2015,^[399] including: her first tattoo written on inside of her right arm in honour of the neighbourhood where her parents grew up, Sunny Hill;^{[28][400][401]} one of people dancing for one of her favourite artists, Keith Haring;^[399] the initials of her two siblings, Rina and Gjin;^[402] the words "mum" and "dad" in her right elbow in tribute to her parents;^[403] the number "245" on the back of her left arm representing the number of shows she performed on her first tour;^[404] the word "patience" as a reminder to her to "stay calm"^[405] and the title of her second studio album, Future Nostalgia (2020), on her left bicep.^[406]

In 2013, Lipa began an on-again, off-again relationship with English chef Isaac Carew, from whom she first split in February 2017.^[407] Six months later, she started a multi-month relationship with the then-lead singer of the American band LANY, Paul Jason Klein, from August 2017 to January 2018.^[408][409] Later she resumed her relationship with Carew, with whom she would finally date from January 2018 to June 2019.^[410] Since 14 June 2019, she has been dating Anwar Hadid, the younger brother of American models Gigi and Bella Hadid.^[411]

In March 2018 she cancelled her participation as opening act in two scheduled concerts of Bruno Mars' 24K Magic World Tour in Brisbane due to dental surgery in which her wisdom tooth was removed and whose radiography showed that she has 33 permanent teeth.^[412][413] On 26 June 2018, she had to leave a concert at Fillmore Auditorium in Denver due to an ear infection to avoid possible permanent damage to her hearing.^[414][415] Lipa has stated she uses social media in "bite sizes"^[21] and said that it and cyberbullying had a negative impact on her mental health,^[347] and her management ran her Twitter account because it caused her anxiety to read "hateful" comments about her and "that shouldn't be the way she was experiencing that once-in-a-lifetime experience." She practises yoga as a daily routine in which she has applied stretches such as the Downward Dog Pose, Warrior Pose and Extended Triangle Pose.^[416][417]

Discography

• Dua Lipa (2017)
• Future Nostalgia (2020)

Tours

Headlining

• Hotter Than Hell Tour (2016)
• US and Europe Tour (2017)
• The Self-Titled Tour (2017–2018)
• Future Nostalgia Tour (2021)

Opening act

• Troye Sivan – Suburbia Tour (2016)
• Bruno Mars – 24K Magic World Tour (2017–2018)
• Coldplay – A Head Full of Dreams Tour (2017)

Awards and nominations

See also

Explanatory notes

References