If you have access to the internet or a Top 40 radio station, you’ve most likely listened to Dua Lipa. Despite only one album currently on the market, she’s becoming a staple in the ever-changing pop scene—a scene that in just 3 months people can easily forget about you.
Dua Lipa, which is her real name, was born in London on August 22, 1995. Her parents, immigrants of Albania and Kosovo, sought political refuge after the dissolution of Yugoslavia.
From a young age, Lipa was sure she wanted to pursue music and studied at the prestigious Sylvia Young Theater School until she was forced to return to Kosovo at the age of 13 where she spent two years struggling to return to London and undertake her long-awaited career as a singer.
However, convincing her parents of this plan was a difficult task. But once back in London, Lipa found her place working in restaurants, clubs and booking modeling jobs while sharing a flat with friends, all at the age of 16. All of this to continue pursuing music, a field in which she highly valued.
Photo: Wikipedia
In 2012, Lipa’s first originals were uploaded on SoundCloud, drawing the attention of Lana Del Rey’s producers and after two intense years of recording, her music and image took off. Despite the inevitable comparisons with the aesthetics and sound of Del Ray, Lipa’s music seems to grow with its own character, as reflected in her self-titled debut album.
Lipa also has the support of icons of the music world, such as Chris Martin of Coldplay, who not only co-wrote the track “Homesick,” which closes Lipa’s album, but invited her to share the stage during part of Coldplay’s tour, exposing her to an audience even more massive than the one already following the young performer.
With a very powerful character and voice, Lipa is pop’s last great hope. With her first album receiving such high praise from listeners and with Lipa having a strong commitment to all that she believes in, she makes us think that a contemporary-diva, a role model is in the making.
Although she had successful singles like “Hotter Than Hell,” “No Lie (featuring Sean Paul)” and “Blow Your Mind,” it wasn’t until the release of “New Rules” that her music went into the stratosphere. The theme of her songs provides a concise sample of the music of the Kosovar because it addresses issues of relationships and empowerment from a fresh and direct perspective—that you can be happy if certain rules are established regarding couples.
“I remember knowing each of the songs on the album by heart before the first year of school,” Lipa said during an interview with BBC in relation to the first record she purchases, which was by Nelly Furtado. “I was obsessed.”
Photo: Wikimedia Commons