Dua Lipa ( /ˈduːə ˈliːpə/ ; Albanian: [dua liːpa] ; born 22 August 1995) is an English singer, songwriter, and model. [5][6] Her musical career began at age 14, when she began covering songs by other artists on YouTube . In 2015, she was signed with Warner Music Group and released her first single soon after. In December 2016, a documentary about Lipa was commissioned by The Fader magazine, titled See in Blue .
Dua Lipa
Lipa in Stockholm, Sweden
Background information
Born
22 August 1995 (age 22)
London , England
Genres
Pop [1] • synth-pop • R&B [2] •
dream pop [3] • dark pop [4]
Occupation(s)
Singer • songwriter • model
Instruments
Vocals
Years active
2015–present
Labels
Dua Lipa Limited • Warner Bros. •
Vertigo • Capitol
Website
In January 2017, she won the EBBA Public Choice Award. [7] Her self-titled debut studio album was released on 2 June 2017. The album spawned seven singles, including the UK top-10 single " Be the One " and the UK number-one single " New Rules ".
Early life
Lipa was born in London on 22 August 1995 to Albanian parents from Kosovo who had left Pristina in the 1990s. [5][6] She attended Sylvia Young Theatre School , part-time, [8] before moving to Kosovo with her family in 2008. [3] Lipa grew up listening to her father, singer Dukagjin Lipa. [3][9] Her given name means "love" in Albanian; its atypical nature was cause for distaste in her youth, but she grew to "enjoy" it as it eliminated the need for a stage name. [10]
At the age of 14, she began posting covers of her favourite songs by artists such as P!nk and Nelly Furtado on YouTube.
[11][12] At the age of 15, she moved back to London with aspirations of becoming a singer. [13] Shortly after, she began working as a model. [11] In 2013, she starred in a television advertisement for The X Factor . [14]
Career
2015–present: Breakthrough and Dua Lipa
In 2015, Lipa began working on her debut album for Warner Music Group . [11] In August 2015, she released her first single "New Love", [15] produced by Emile Haynie and Andrew Wyatt . [11] She released her second single " Be the One ", in October 2015. [6][16] "Be the One" achieved success across Europe, reaching number one in Belgium, [17] Poland and Slovakia, as well as charting within the top 10 in over 11 European territories. In Australia and New Zealand, the song became an airplay success, reaching numbers 6 and 20 respectively. [18] Lipa describes her musical style as "dark pop". [16] On 30 November 2015, she was revealed as one of the acts on the BBC Sound of... 2016 long list. [12] Her first tour in the UK and Europe began in January 2016. [3] In November 2016, Lipa concluded her tour through Europe. [19]
On 18 February 2016, Lipa released her third single "Last Dance", followed by " Hotter than Hell " on 6 May. "Hotter than Hell" became a hit worldwide, especially in the UK, where it peaked at number 15. [20] On 26 August, her fifth overall single " Blow Your Mind (Mwah) " was released. It became the singer's first entry on the US Billboard Hot 100 , debuting at number 72. [21] "Blow Your Mind (Mwah)" also topped the
Billboard Dance Club Songs chart [22] and reached number 23 on the Billboard Mainstream Top 40 chart. [23] Elsewhere, the song enjoyed moderate success, reaching the top 20 in Belgium, [17] Hungary, New Zealand and Scotland. In the UK, the single peaked at number 30, making it the singer's second highest-charting single in British territory. [20] In November 2016, Sean Paul released the single " No Lie " featuring Lipa. [24] In December 2016, a documentary about Lipa was commissioned by The Fader magazine, called See in Blue . [25] In January 2017, Lipa released the single " Scared to Be Lonely " with Martin Garrix . [26]
Her self-titled debut studio album was released on 2 June 2017. [27] Its sixth single " New Rules ", became Lipa's first number one in the UK. [20] In doing so, it also became the first song in nearly two years by a female solo artist to reach the top in the UK since " Hello" by Adele in 2015. [28] In December 2017, Lipa was named the most streamed woman of 2017 in the UK by Spotify .
