Dua Lipa facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Dua Lipa
Lipa in 2024
Born	(1995-08-22) 22 August 1995 (age 29) London, England
Citizenship	United Kingdom Albania
Occupation	Singer songwriter actress
Years active	2013–present
Works	Discography songs recorded
Awards	Full list
Musical career
Genres	Pop disco dance-pop synth-pop R&B
Instruments	Vocals
Labels	Warner
Signature

Dua Lipa (born 22 August 1995) is a famous singer, songwriter, and actress from England and Albania. She has won many important awards, including seven Brit Awards and three Grammy Awards. In 2024, Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world.

Before becoming a music star, Dua Lipa worked as a model. She signed with Warner Bros. in 2014. Her first album, called Dua Lipa, came out in 2017. It became very popular in the UK, reaching number three on the music charts. Songs like "Be the One", "IDGAF", and the number-one hit "New Rules" were on it. In 2018, she won Brit Awards for Best British Female Solo Artist and Best British Breakthrough Act.

Her song "One Kiss" with Calvin Harris was the best-selling song in the UK in 2018. It also won a Brit Award for Song of the Year. In 2019, Dua Lipa won a Grammy Award for Best New Artist. She also won Best Dance Recording for her song "Electricity" with Silk City.

Dua Lipa's second album, Future Nostalgia (2020), was her first album to reach number one in the UK. It also did very well in the US. The first song from the album, "Don't Start Now", stayed in the top ten of the UK Singles Chart for a long time. Other hit songs from the album included "Physical", "Break My Heart", and "Levitating". "Levitating" was a huge success, becoming one of the top songs of 2021 in the US. Future Nostalgia won a Brit Award for British Album of the Year and a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album.

Later, Dua Lipa had two more UK number-one songs. These were "Cold Heart (Pnau remix)" with Elton John in 2021 and "Dance the Night" from the Barbie movie soundtrack in 2023. She also made her acting debut in the Barbie movie. In 2024, she released her third album, Radical Optimism, which also reached number one in the UK. This album included popular songs like "Houdini", "Training Season", and "Illusion". She also had a role in the 2024 spy film Argylle.

Early Life and Music Dreams

Dua Lipa was born in London. Her parents, Anesa and Dukagjin Lipa, are from Kosovo. Her family is Muslim, and she also has Bosnian roots through her grandmother. Her grandfathers were both historians. Dua has a younger sister named Rina and a brother named Gjin.

Her father, Dukagjin, was a singer and guitarist in a rock band from Kosovo called Oda. He played music at home, including his own songs and music from artists like David Bowie and Radiohead. Dua started singing when she was five years old.

She grew up in West Hampstead, London. She went to Fitzjohn's Primary School, where she learned to play the cello. When she tried out for the school choir, the teacher told her she "could not sing." At age nine, she started weekend singing lessons at the Sylvia Young Theatre School.

In 2008, when Kosovo became independent, Dua Lipa moved with her family to Pristina. There, she learned more about the Albanian language and started thinking seriously about a music career.

When she was 15, Dua Lipa moved back to London. She went to Parliament Hill School and also studied part-time at Sylvia Young Theatre School again. She began uploading her own songs and covers of popular songs to SoundCloud and YouTube. She covered songs by artists like Alicia Keys and Christina Aguilera.

Dua Lipa also did some modeling for brands like Topshop. In 2013, she got a small role as a singer in an advertisement for The X Factor. This helped her find a producer and a manager.

Music Career Journey

Starting Out: 2013–2018

Lipa in 2016

In 2013, Dua Lipa signed with Tap Management. She was working as a waitress at the time. Her manager offered her a monthly salary so she could quit her job and focus on making music. She co-wrote the song "Hotter than Hell". This led to her signing a record deal with Warner Bros. Records in 2014. Her team believed in her because Warner Bros. needed a big female pop artist.

In August 2015, she released her first single, "New Love". Her second single, "Be the One", came out in October 2015. It was a big hit in Europe, reaching number one in Belgium, Poland, and Slovakia. It also did well in Australia and New Zealand. In November 2015, the BBC named her one of the artists to watch for 2016.

Dua Lipa went on her first tour in the UK and Europe in 2016. She released more singles like "Last Dance" and "Hotter than Hell". "Hotter than Hell" reached number 15 in the UK. Her song "Blow Your Mind (Mwah)" was her first song to appear on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart.

In November 2016, she was featured on Sean Paul's song "No Lie", which reached number ten in the UK. A documentary about her called See in Blue was released in 2017. In January 2017, she won the EBBA Public Choice Award. She also released "Scared to Be Lonely", a song with Martin Garrix.

Her first album, Dua Lipa, was released on 2 June 2017. The song "New Rules" became her first number one hit in the UK. It was the first time a female solo artist had a number one song in the UK since Adele in 2015. "New Rules" also did well in other countries, reaching number six in the US. The music video for "New Rules" has been watched over three billion times on YouTube. She performed at the Glastonbury Festival in June 2017. By December 2017, Spotify named her the most streamed woman in the UK.

Lipa at the Hollywood Palladium in February 2018

In January 2018, Dua Lipa received five nominations at the 2018 Brit Awards. This was more than any other artist that year. She won two awards: British Female Solo Artist and British Breakthrough Act. She performed at the awards ceremony in London.

She also worked with American DJ Whethan on the song "High" for the Fifty Shades Freed movie soundtrack. On 6 April, Dua Lipa and Calvin Harris released "One Kiss". This song became her second number one in the UK and was the best-selling song of 2018 in the UK. She performed at the opening ceremony of the 2018 UEFA Champions League Final in Kyiv. She also collaborated with Mark Ronson and Diplo's group Silk City on the song "Electricity", released in September.

In October, she released Dua Lipa: The Complete Edition, an updated version of her first album. It included new songs and collaborations, like "Kiss and Make Up" with the South Korean girl group Blackpink.

Future Nostalgia Era: 2019–2022

In January 2019, Dua Lipa released "Swan Song" for the movie Alita: Battle Angel. She spent the rest of the year writing her second album. She said the album would have a "nostalgic" pop sound, like a "dancercise class." In August 2019, she became the face of the perfume Libre by Yves Saint Laurent.

Her second album, Future Nostalgia, was announced in December 2019. Its first single, "Don't Start Now", reached number two in both the UK and US charts. It stayed in the UK top 10 for a very long time. The album's second single was "Physical", released in January 2020.

Future Nostalgia came out on 27 March 2020 and received great reviews. It quickly became number one on the UK Albums Chart. The album broke records, with four of its songs entering the top ten of the Official Singles Chart. "Levitating" became her third top-ten hit in the US.

In August 2020, Dua Lipa became a global ambassador for the French water brand Évian. She also released a remix of "Levitating" featuring Madonna and Missy Elliott. This was part of Club Future Nostalgia, a remix album. Another remix of "Levitating" with rapper DaBaby was released in October. She also collaborated with Belgian singer Angèle on "Fever" and with Miley Cyrus on "Prisoner".

In November 2020, Dua Lipa performed a special livestream concert called Studio 2054. She sang songs from Future Nostalgia and some of her older hits. Many special guests, like Kylie Minogue and Elton John, joined her. Future Nostalgia was the most streamed album by a woman on Spotify in 2020.

Lipa performing at the O2 Arena, London in May 2022

In February 2021, she released the single "We're Good" and an updated version of her album, Future Nostalgia: The Moonlight Edition. She also co-wrote "Retrograde" for Aleyna Tilki. In August 2021, she worked with Elton John again on "Cold Heart (Pnau remix)", which became her third UK number one song.

In February 2022, Dua Lipa started a weekly newsletter called Service95 and a podcast called Dua Lipa: At Your Service. She also collaborated with Megan Thee Stallion on "Sweetest Pie" and with Calvin Harris and Young Thug on "Potion".

Acting Debut and Radical Optimism: 2023–Present

Lipa at the Glastonbury Festival on 28 June 2024

On 26 May 2023, Dua Lipa released "Dance the Night" for the Barbie movie soundtrack. She also made her acting debut in the movie, playing Mermaid Barbie. In November 2023, she gained full ownership of all her songs and music rights.

On 9 November 2023, she released "Houdini", the first song from her third album. She worked with Kevin Parker and Danny L Harle on the album. The next singles, "Training Season" and "Illusion", came out in early 2024. Her album, Radical Optimism, was released on 3 May 2024. She also had a role in the 2024 spy action comedy Argylle.

In June 2024, Dua Lipa went on a short tour in Europe, performing at famous amphitheaters. She also headlined the Glastonbury Festival 2024, closing the Pyramid Stage. She announced the Radical Optimism Tour to support her new album. In October, she performed at the Royal Albert Hall in London. A remix of "These Walls" with Belgian singer Pierre de Maere was released in November 2024. She also announced her first live album, Dua Lipa Live from the Royal Albert Hall, for December.

Fashion and Endorsements

Dua Lipa has appeared on the covers of many magazines, including Elle, British Vogue, V, and Clash. She signed with Next Models.

In March 2017, she became a global ambassador for the shoe company Foot Locker. She also appeared in campaigns for Adidas Originals. In 2018, she partnered with the car brand Jaguar for their new electric car, the Jaguar I-Pace. They even created a world record for the "most remixed song ever" using her song "Want To".

She has also worked with fashion brands like Nyden and Pepe Jeans. She designed clothing collections inspired by 1990s fashion for Pepe Jeans. She was on the cover of British GQ and Rolling Stone magazine.

In November 2020, she signed a partnership with Puma and became their global ambassador. She has also been the face of Versace's campaigns.

Dua Lipa is often praised for her style at award shows. She has been named one of the "best dressed" celebrities at the Grammy Awards multiple times for her Versace and Alexander Wang dresses.

She released a special lip gloss with MAC Cosmetics. She also became the face of the perfume "Libre" for Yves Saint Laurent in 2019. She recorded a cover of "I'm Free" for the perfume's advertisements. She also became an ambassador for the mineral water brand Évian in 2020.

Music Style and Inspirations

Dua Lipa has a mezzo-soprano voice. Her music is mostly pop, but it also includes styles like disco, house, and R&B. Her songs are often described as dance-pop and synth-pop. She calls her own music "dark pop." People often notice her "distinct, husky, low voice."

When she writes songs, Dua Lipa usually starts with an idea and then works with co-writers to develop the song. She is inspired by artists like Kylie Minogue, Pink, Nelly Furtado, and Jamiroquai. For her album Future Nostalgia, she was inspired by artists she listened to as a teenager, such as Gwen Stefani, Madonna, and Blondie.

Impact and Influence

Dua Lipa has had a big impact. A study showed that the number of babies named "Dua" in England and Wales doubled after her song "New Rules" became number one in 2017. In 2018, British Vogue included her on their list of the 25 most influential British women. She was the youngest person on that list at 22 years old.

Many people believe Dua Lipa helped bring disco music back into style in 2020 with her song "Don't Start Now." People magazine called her "the Future of Pop." Australian singer Kylie Minogue described Dua Lipa as a "shining star."

You can find wax figures of Dua Lipa at Madame Tussauds Wax Museums in major cities around the world.

Awards and Achievements

Dua Lipa has won many awards. These include seven Brit Awards, three Grammy Awards, one MTV Video Music Award, and two MTV Europe Music Awards. She has also received nine Spotify 1 BILLION streams plaques for her songs.

She holds two Guinness World Records. In 2020, she got one for selling the most tickets for a livestreamed concert by a solo female artist. In 2021, she got another for having the most monthly listeners on Spotify for a female artist. In 2024, she won the Top Dance/Electronic Song award at the Billboard Music Awards for her song Houdini.

Dua Lipa in the Media

Views and Support

Lipa raising an LGBT flag at a concert in Los Angeles in 2018.

Dua Lipa believes in feminism. She has spoken out about sexism in the music industry and uses social media to talk about women's issues.

She supports universal health care and believes it should be a right for everyone, like in her home country, the UK. In July 2020, she supported the "Let the Music Play" campaign. This campaign asked the UK government to help the live music industry during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In July 2021, her Sunny Hill Foundation helped rebuild a kindergarten in Tirana, Albania, that was damaged by an earthquake. She said she was "very proud to be Albanian" and that the kindergarten would be beautiful. She also uses her social media and newsletter to raise awareness about issues like the situation in Afghanistan.

In August 2022, the President of Kosovo named Dua Lipa an Honorary Ambassador of Kosovo. She said it was an "honor and a privilege to be able to represent my country all over the world."

Helping Others

Dua Lipa and her father, Dukagjin, started the Sunny Hill Foundation in 2016. This foundation raises money to help people in Kosovo who are facing money problems. In August 2018, Dua Lipa organized the Sunny Hill Festival to raise money for the foundation. The Mayor of Pristina gave her the Pristina Key, which was a special honor.

In November 2018, she joined a UNICEF campaign called "Go Blue" to support children's rights. She changed the lyrics of her song "Be the One" to "blue" for the campaign. In December 2018, she performed at a charity concert to help people who are homeless in London.

In April 2019, she became a UNICEF supporter. She visited a camp for refugee children and youth in Lebanon, including those affected by the Syrian civil war. She also supported a campaign to raise money for mental health charities.

After an earthquake in Albania in November 2019, Dua Lipa asked fans for donations. She also released special t-shirts to raise money for the victims. In March 2020, she asked fans to donate to the UNHCR to help refugees during the COVID-19 pandemic. She performed from her apartment for a TV special to raise money for health organizations.

She also took part in a charity song called "Times Like These" with other artists to raise money for charities like Children in Need and Comic Relief. She encouraged people to donate blood after the 2020 Beirut explosion. She also donated to the Theatre of Dodona in Kosovo. She participated in a charity raffle to fund research against childhood cancer. In 2021, she performed virtually for the Elton John AIDS Foundation Academy Award Party to help fight HIV disease.

Personal Life

Dua Lipa's first name, Dua, means "love" in Albanian. Her grandmother suggested the name. Fans sometimes call her "Dula Peep," a nickname that started when a TV host mispronounced her name. She has embraced this nickname.

Her native language is Albanian, and she speaks it fluently. She also speaks English with a London accent. She sees her "dual identity" as a strength.

Dua Lipa is an "honorary Liverpool supporter." Their fans adopted her song "One Kiss" after she performed it at a football final. On 27 November 2022, she was granted Albanian citizenship by the President of Albania.

From 2019 to 2021, she was in a relationship with American model Anwar Hadid. Since January 2024, she has been dating British actor Callum Turner.

In 2024, her estimated net worth was about £90 million.

Discography

• Dua Lipa (2017)
• Future Nostalgia (2020)
• Radical Optimism (2024)

Filmography

Tours

Headlining

• The Self-Titled Tour (2017–2018)
• Future Nostalgia Tour (2022)
• Radical Optimism Tour (2024–2025)

Promotional

• 2016 UK Tour (2016)
• Hotter Than Hell Tour (2016)
• US and Europe Tour (2017)

Opening act

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

See also

In Spanish: Dua Lipa para niños

• List of mezzo-sopranos in non-classical music
• List of most-followed Instagram accounts
• List of most-streamed artists on Spotify
• List of YouTubers
• List of people from Pristina
• Albanian diaspora
• Disco revival