When the pandemic first hit and normality was pulled out from under our feet, Dua Lipaâs second album âFuture Nostalgiaâ was one of the first new records to provide some escape. A series of infectious and fun disco gems, it brought the glitzy, sticky thrill of nights out into our homes, urging you to push the furniture aside, turn the lights off and forget all your new pandemic fears.
Seven months on, with the UK back in lockdown and coronavirus still commanding the globe, the pop star has found a new way to take us out of this moment. For her first livestream concert, Lipa has built an alternate reality â one where you can still run wild in a warehouse all night, indulging in excess and ecstasy, running from one room to another in search of the perfect soundtrack to your nocturnal adventures.
Dubbed Studio 2054, itâs an aesthetic wonderland of neon and glitter, sequins and mirrorballs, and its creator performance elevates it from pretty place to pop paradise. She begins on a podium for âFuture Nostalgiaâ, dancers grooving around her as she sets the tone for the night with the playful, alluring track. The sublime âLevitatingâ offers up the first glimpse of a choreographed routine, Lipa and her troupe matching the songâs light-hearted lyrics with equally fun moves, while, later, âCoolâ pairs gentle yearning with the star being transformed into the entertainment at a roller disco.
Although Lipa could more than craft and control this fantasy land by herself, itâs a special occasion and sheâs roped in some friends to help out. FKA Twigs previews the duoâs collaboration âWhy Donât You Love Meâ for the first time, spinning seductively around a pole and whispering, âWhy donât you love me anymore?â over a minimal, glitchy beat. Towards the end, Studio 2054âs architect joins her and things change gear, their voices rasping as they yell: âYou hurt me in a world like this / Youâre dead when I say so.â
During a segment that takes things into a grimy club, Kylie Minogue drops by to deliver her own sultry disco track âReal Grooveâ before helping out on Lipaâs Silk City collab âElectricityâ. DJ The Blessed Madonna, who helmed the recent remix album âClub Future Nostalgiaâ, commands the decks, mixing Gwen Stefaniâs âHollaback Girlâ with âPhysicalâ, and Belgian singer Angèle crashes Duaâs dressing room to bring the sticky, bilingual pop of âFeverâ to the night.
Thereâs no shortage to the star power to help Lipa out with her big night, though one guest feels shoehorned in. After âElectricityâ, Elton John appears on a screen, playing a beautiful version of his classic âRocket Manâ. Before he finishes, though, heâs cut off, the cameras panning to another part of the warehouse where Lipa launches into âHallucinateâ. With no link to the rest of the set, it ends up feeling random â at best, like a room youâve temporarily dipped into to find lost friends; at worst, a filler while Lipa takes a breather and changes outfits. Itâs a missed opportunity to see what a team-up between a legend and one of popâs current greats would look like.
That slight blip aside, Studio 2054 goes some way to completing Lipaâs evolution from good to great that started with the release of âFuture Nostalgiaâ. Although the routines on show tonight arenât the most complex, they flesh out her performance enough that now she has the songs, the personality and the presence that all true icons possess. Hopefully next time we get to witness them, weâll no longer need her to use them to transport us out of our own homes.
Dua Lipa played:
‘Future Nostalgia’
‘Levitating’
‘Pretty Please’
‘Break My Heart’
‘Why Don’t You Love Me?’
‘Physical’
‘Cool’
‘New Rules’
‘UN DIA (One Day)’
‘Fever’
‘One Kiss’
‘Real Groove’
‘Electricity’
‘Rocket Man’
‘Hallucinate’
‘Don’t Start Now’
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