Dua Lipa is one of the biggest superstars in pop music currently and for good reason. Though she’s only released two albums thus far, Dua Lipa in 2017 and the 2020 blockbuster Future Nostalgia, the English singer/songwriter has become a worldwide phenomenon with hits like “New Rules,” “Don’t Start Now,” “Levitating” and more.
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Her songs have a way of instantly grabbing one’s ear, not letting go until the song’s end. Though she has two albums worth of songs that are single-worthy, not every one can be shipped to radio. Here are five of Lipa’s best deep cuts.
1. “Bang Bang”
“Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)” was written by Sonny Bono and originally recorded and released by his then-wife Cher in 1966. Lipa added her voice to the banger and cut it as a bonus track on the Italian special edition of her 2017 self-titled debut album.
The hitmaker offers a moody take on this dark love story about a couple who meet as children, the two ultimately marrying. Yet she’s shot down when her husband decides to leave her, Lipa’s smoky voice and intoxicating pop melody make this cinematic interpretation one you’ll want to have on repeat.
2. “Boys Will Be Boys”
Lipa made a statement when she placed “Boys Will Be Boys” as the closing track of her acclaimed sophomore album, Future Nostalgia. Here, she makes an unabashed feminist statement right from the opening lines as she sings, It’s second nature to walk home before the sun goes down/And put your keys between your knuckles when there’s boys around/Isn’t it funny how we laugh it off to hide our fear?/When there’s nothing funny here.
These pointed lyrics are wrapped around a baroque, chamber pop melody that adds to the song’s intrigue. “Boys Will Be Boys” carries an important message that’s worth listening to.
3. “Begging”
This deep cut off Dua Lipa will have you begging for more with its irresistible beat matched by Lipa’s signature voice. The sultry lyrics find Lipa at the center of an intoxicating love wherein the chorus builds into the climactic bridge as she professes, ‘Cause all my bones are begging me to beg for you/Begging me to beg for your love. It’s one of a handful of songs off the project that she didn’t release as a single, yet it still raises its hand as a standout track.
4. “No Goodbyes”
The singer turns heartache into a pop banger with “No Goodbyes.” She blends a gentle piano with a pulsing beat as she pleads with soaring vocals, Why don’t we hold each other/Use each other/Whisper pretty lies?/Just for tonight, let’s love like there’s no goodbyes. In typical Lipa fashion, the production is on point, making for an electrifying deep cut on Dua Lipa.
5. “Pretty Please”
The London-born hitmaker gets cheeky with “Pretty Please,” a catchy, electro-pop-meets-funk track off Future Nostalgia that she co-wrote with Julia Michaels, Ian Kirkpatrick and Caroline Ailin. Lipa isn’t coy about what she wants, spelling it out in the lyrics as she asks her lover for the “fun” type of tension. Pretty please/I need your hands on me/Sweet relief/Pretty please, she sings dreamily on this earworm bop.
Photo by Cindy Ord/MG23/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue
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