Mark Savage
Music Correspondent
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Dua Lipa and Jay Kay duetted on a surprise version of Jamiroquai’s 1996 hit Virtual Insanity
Dua Lipa treated fans to a surprise appearance by Jamiroquai, as she played her first ever show at Wembley Stadium.
Bringing out the band’s frontman Jay Kay for a one-off performance of his 1996 hit Virtual Insanity, the star said he was “a massive trailblazer for British music”.
Their performance came half-way through a stunning two-hour show, that saw Lipa tear through hits like Physical, One Kiss, New Rules and Levitating.
”This is such a massive, massive milestone for me,” she told her 70,000 fans. “I’ve had a lump in my throat from the moment this show started.”
Some dedicated fans had camped out since Thursday to see the singer’s UK stadium debut, braving temperatures that exceeded 31C.
“It means the absolute world to me that you’re here tonight,” she told them during the show. “It feels like I’ve waited my whole life for this moment.”
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The Radical Optimism tour marks the first time Dua Lipa has headlined stadium dates
Reflecting on her ascent to the top tier of pop music, the 29-year-old added: ”It’s been 10 years since our first ever London show, which happened to be about 350 people, and I dreamt of a night like this.“
“To be in front of 70,000 people. I’m so, so blown away.”
She then introduced one of her earliest singles, Hotter Than Hell, telling fans it was the track that had earned her a recording contract.
Since then, she has stockpiled an enviable selection of armour-plated hits, most of which got an airing on Friday night.
The show began with a new-agey wash of ocean sounds, that segued seamlessly into her 2024 single, Training Season.
Lipa sang the first verse slowly, over a sultry orchestral backing. But before long, the band kicked into gear, and the disco pulse barely let up for the next two hours.
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The star had multiple costume changes throughout the show
In many respects, the set played like an extended remix of her triumphant Glastonbury performance last year – full of pin-sharp choreography and fiercely futuristic pop.
Her voice remains a strong point – resonant and flexible, with a hint of the rasp she inherited from her father, Albanian rock singer Dukajin Lipa.
It was particularly effective on the cascading vocal runs of Falling Forever, and the Flamenco-flavoured Maria.
Somehow, Lipa managed not to lose her breath, despite demanding, body-rolling dance routines that only occasionally recalled Jane Fonda’s 1980s keep fit videos. She leaned into the schtick with an interlude instructing her fans to “move those hips” over the intro to Physical.
Jay Kay arrived to a scream of recognition from older members of the audience, suited up in a tasseled white cowboy jacket and pink jeans.
“What a privilege and an honour to be on stage with you,” said the singer, before launching into Virtual Insanity – a song that became a hit when Dua was just one year old.
Between songs, the star spent time getting personal with fans in the front row – borrowing their phones to pose for selfies, signing records (side note: who on earth brings a vinyl record to the front row of a stadium concert?) and even appropriating one person’s scarf to accentuate her own stage outfit.
It was a simple, but personal, touch that helped to illustrate why the star has become only the second British woman after Adele to headline Wembley Stadium.
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The singer was flanked by 12 dancers throughout the show
Watched from the stands by her family, including fiancé Callum Turner, she wrapped up the show with a flawless four-song encore that included some of her biggest hits: New Rules, Don’t Start Now and Dance The Night.
Lipa finished with the psychedelic pop smash Houdini, ratcheting up the tension with a flurry of fireworks as she head-banged to a shredding guitar solo. Then the music suddenly stopped and she vanished in a cloud of smoke.
A powerhouse performance from a star at the top of their game, it was proof that you don’t need giant mechanical props or cutting edge video technology to pull off a compelling stadium show.
Sometimes, the right songs, the right choreography and a generous helping of feel-good energy are enough.
As an added bonus, that keeps the tickets affordable: The most expensive seats cost £155, compared to some stadium shows this summer, where prices have topped £900.
Lipa continues her Radical Optimism tour with a second night at Wembley on Saturday, followed by dates in Liverpool and London before the North American leg kicks off in September.
Dua Lipa’s Wembley stadium setlist
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The star’s staging was simpler than some stadium shows, without cutting corners on spectacle
- Training Season
- End of an Era
- Break My Heart
- One Kiss
- Whatcha Doing
- Levitating
- These Walls
- Hotter Than Hell
- Virtual Insanity (with Jamiroquai)
- Maria
- Physical
- Electricity
- Hallucinate
- Illusion
- Falling Forever
- Happy for You
- Love Again
- Anything For Love
- Be the One
Encore:
- New Rules
- Dance the Night
- Don’t Start Now
- Houdini