Dua Lipa Radical Optimism review: The song and dance queen's sequel will be the ... trends now
DUA LIPA: Radical Optimism (Warner)
Verdict: Classy club-friendly comeback
Her credentials as a song and dance queen are second to none, but Dua Lipa also has an impeccable sense of timing. Four years ago, just as Britain went into lockdown for the first time, she released her feel-good second album, Future Nostalgia, and provided the perfect accompaniment for thousands of impromptu kitchen discos.
This week, as winter finally loosens its chilly grip, she's come up with a sequel that bristles with warm, sunny enthusiasm. As its title suggests, Radical Optimism is a buoyant collection of breezy dance and luxuriantly produced pop that may well end up soundtracking the summer.
Lipa says she was inspired by the confidence shown by British music in the 1990s — the brashness of Britpop and the style of trip-hop acts such as Portishead and Massive Attack — and she displays a similar level of self-belief. As she puts it: 'A friend introduced me to the term Radical Optimism, and it struck me — the idea of going through chaos gracefully and feeling like you can weather any storm.'
Pop zone: Dua Lipa is releasing her new album today
Dua Lipa performs at the Grammy Awards in Los Angeles on February 4 2024
DUA LIPA: Radical Optimism (Warner) Rating: Four stars out of five
This third album, it should be said, isn't going to be forensically picked apart for detailed personal insights in the manner of Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department or Ariana Grande's recent Eternal Sunshine. Lipa, born in London to Kosovo Albanian parents, is dating British actor Callum Turner, who starred in the George Clooney-directed 2023 rowing film The Boys In The Boat, but she sings of relationships in more general terms, shying away from intimate revelations and retaining a certain mystique.
The musical changes are subtle rather than dramatic. Dua, 28, was
