It's incredible how much a music video changes when you completely remove the music, isn't it? Dua Lipa's now-iconic 2017 single 'New Rules' is no exception to this rule. The video, that shows Lipa and an entourage of her female friends singing the song while they party around a house, was the subject of numerous parodies and covers.
Muting its music gives it a surreal vibe, as the girls all sing the lyrics a cappella, while a few sounds can be heard: a creaking bed, clothes ruffling, a hand wiping condensation from a mirror, and the girls' breath as they inhale and exhale to sing. In fact, Dua Lipa's voice is hardly even heard when she sings part of the chorus.
22-year-old Dua Lipa was born in London, England, and she started her career as a singer by uploading song covers on YouTube at the age of 14. A year later, in 2015, she signed with the Warner Music Group, releasing her first official single shortly afterwards. Dua Lipa's parents hail from Kosovo, Albania, and they relocated to the UK in the early 1990s. Her first name means 'love' in Albanian. She and her father created the Sunny Hill Foundation in 2016 to support Kosovan citizens.
Since then, her popularity has sky-rocketed. Last year, she won the EBBA Public Choice Award and released her self-titled debut album. Her singles 'Be the One' and 'IDGAF' reached the top ten in the UK and 'New Rules' was number one, while also reaching to number six in the United States. Talking to Teen Vogue about 'New Rules', Lipa said that she 'wanted it to be about the rules you would tell your girlfriends. I think sisterhood is really important. It’s really important to take care of the girls around you and keep your friends close.'
Early in 2018, Lipa was the most nominated artist at the Brit Awards of this year, being a nominee for British Breakthrough Act, British Female Solo Artist, British Album of the Year (her debut), and British Single of The Year and British Video of The Year (both for New Rules). She was the first female artist to be nominated five times for the same ceremony and ended up taking home the awards for Best Female Solo Artist and Best Breakthrough Act.
She recently announced on social media that she's already working on her second album, for which she will be collaborating with producer, singer, and songwriter MNEK, who also wrote her hit-single IDGAF. Lipa also worked with music producer Whethan on High, a song for the soundtrack of the Fifty Shades of Grey sequel, Fifty Shades Freed.
In April 2018, Lipa released a duet with singer Calvin Harris called 'One Kiss'. The track was described as a 'dreamy whirlpool of deep house' and 'song of the summer'. A month later, they also released a video to accompany this summery tune, depicting Harris as a waiter who serves Dua Lipa cocktails by the swimming pool. It is still currently an exclusive on Apple Music, but Lipa has said that the video will be available on other services 'very soon'.