Delving Into Dua Lipa
At just 25-years-old, Dua Lipa has already had two very successful careers. (Three if you count her clear pop culture icon status.)
At 15, the star took London by storm as a model for fashion brands big and small. Her catalog modelling background included virtual catalogs for ASOS and other retail brands. She admits that working in the modelling industry was just a way she could make contacts. From day one, Dua Lipa knew she wanted to be a singer. Therefore, she found a way to get there… even if it meant odd jobs and magazine deals.
Lipa chronicles that time in her life in her hit “Blow A Kiss (Mwah).” It’s not easy being a teenager or living alone in a big city with even bigger dreams. She did it, though, and stayed the course until she hit it big.
Unfortunately, hitting it big took quite a few years of releasing her work unsuccessfully and independently on Soundcloud. Utilizing the Internet to self-publish and promote herself, alongside her search for contacts, worked out well for the London-native. Lipa got connected with The X Factor UK in 2013, where she starred in a commercial for the competition program. Because the background of the show includes the likes of Harry Styles and One Direction, Lipa finally got the contact she was yearning for.
Within a year of her X Factor advertisement, Lipa was signed to Warner Bros. under Lana Del Rey’s manager. Since then, the Londoner has slowly, but surely, shaped her place in the music world. Nothing cemented her spot in it, though, like “New Rules.”
The “New Rules” Dua Lipa Set in the Music Industry
Dua Lipa released a handful of singles between 2014 and 2016. While they got some airplay on British radio stations, they didn’t chart highly or expand much globally. It was getting her name out there, though, and got her featured on songs with Sean Paul and Martin Garrix. She was on her way.
It was the summer of 2017 when the star’s debut record dropped. This record was self-titled, bouncy, and the propeller needed to get this career off the ground. It’s lead single, “New Rules,” came with the record and transcended time and space.
The hit song is pop music in its most natural form. Fans can dance to it, scream the lyrics at the top of their lungs, and watch the music video on an endless loop. Dua Lipa was, and is, a pop star, thanks to “New Rules.” The girl power anthem centers around staying true to yourself and not returning to a persuasive ex.
It’s music video won awards for it’s cinematography and stunned social media with it’s imagery. With 2.3 billion views on YouTube, it’s a clear frontrunner for 21st century music videos. The video features the singer alongside a slew of muli-racial, multi-size other women. It screams “inclusion” without feeling forced and still showcasing beauty more than anything. Female-fronted, female-centric, and female-empowering, everything about “New Rules” was flawless. It’s indelible lyrics and catchy, disco-esque beat gave the song groove and made it very danceable. Shooting to the top of the charts in not one, not two, but seven countries including the UK and US proves that.
This style of music and art is inclusive, poppy, new wave, and groundbreaking – and it’s Dua Lipa’s niche. Everything the colorful performer has done has matched, if not outdone, “New Rules.”
A Moment At The Grammys
In the past year, though, the UK-born singer has shot to new levels of talent and stardom. Her sophomore record brought her even more chart-topping singles. The memorable breakout releases, “Don’t Start Now,” “Physical,” and “Levitating,” all came from this smash album.
Future Nostalgia, this iconic sophomore record, brought Lipa from popstar to pop superstar. Throughout it’s 2020 release, each single soared online and on radio, the star performed live, and stunned in visual videos. Nobody, outside of her tight knit fan base, saw that more than The Recording Academy.
For the star’s second ever Grammy Awards, she is up for six. Six nominations – and a performance – are coming this Sunday night. At her first Grammys, in 2019, Dua Lipa had two nominations. She won both. (Best New Artist and Best Dance Recording, which she shares with Silk City for “Electricity.”)
This year, she is up for many more, including the coveted Record of the Year. The following are her 2021 nominations:
Album of the Year: Future Nostalgia
Best Pop Vocal Album: Future Nostalgia
Record of the Year: “Don’t Start Now”
Song of the Year: “Don’t Start Now”
Best Pop Solo Performance: “Don’t Start Now”
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance: “Un Día (One Day)” with J Balvin, Bad Bunny, and Tainy
She is not undeserving, though, because the aesthetics, melodies, and artistry in all Lipa does has been evident since day one. Who else becomes a model just to eventually become a singer ten years later? Only someone who is hands on, determined, and beautiful inside, outside, and musically.
Tune into the 63rd annual Grammy Awards this weekend to cheer Dua Lipa and her disco pop music on!
