Background:
On November 1st, 2019, Dua Lipa dropped Don’t Start Now, the first single off of her sophomore album, Future Nostalgia. Almost immediately, fans fell in love with the first of many disco-esque pop songs off of her upcoming album. Dua Lipa followed this chart-topping single with three other songs: Future Nostalgia, Physical, and Break My Heart. The four singles combined created a disco, nostalgic mood that perfectly paralleled the album’s title. Dua Lipa was creating music not to disappoint.
Fast forward to March, Dua Lipa announced that her album would now be released on March 27th, a week earlier than anticipated. Immediately, fans were excited. However, it wasn’t until critic reviews were released that anticipation reached a climax. Future Nostalgia had a Metacritic score of 97 just a few days before its release, the highest rating of any 2020 album thus far. Even weeks after its drop, the album still has a score of 89, the second-highest rating of 2020. Rolling Stone writes, “Future Nostalgia is a breathtakingly fun, cohesive and ambitious attempt to find a place for disco in 2020,” and The Independent (UK) says, “there isn’t a duff track on here. Every beat is elastic, every note and sample bold and shiny. Future Nostalgia is 37 minutes of pure sonic spandex.” All of this considered, I decided to analyze Dua Lipa’s sophomore album and truly understand why it’s garnered so much praise.
Track 1: Future Nostalgia
The album begins with the bold, futuristic, title track: Future Nostalgia. Future Nostalgia is an empowering feminist anthem, where Lipa sings about female alphas and intimidating others with her new, profound confidence. Compared to other tracks on the album, Future Nostalgia has a more experimental sound. Lipa herself even described the song as “playful and fun and not […] too serious.” Future Nostalgia opens the album not only with a major punch of disco, but also with the clear establishment of feminist themes.
Track 2: Don’t Start Now
After the electric Future Nostalgia, one can wonder if Lipa can actually provide more disco. The answer is a simple and blatant yes. Don’t Start Now, is the lead single of Lipa’s new era, as it rightfully should be. The disco-inspired track is reminiscent of the ’80s and makes any listener just want to groove! It is an empowering break-up song, but most certainly does not feel like one. When you listen to the lyrics, Lipa sings about an ex-lover crawling back, only after she has regained her confidence and moved on. It truly is a relatable statement to many about feeling stronger than you believe.
Track 3: Cool
Cool takes a break from the stimulating, disco songs that the first two tracks are. Lipa sings about “losin’ her cool” in a much more sultry and mellow way, whereas Future Nostalgia and Don’t Start Now discuss empowerment and breakup in a very upbeat manner. Lipa, in Cool, has met a new special someone who causes her to act unlike herself. Lipa is excited and aroused whenever she is near this person and is not afraid to admit her new feelings for her partner.
Track 4: Physical
On the fourth track. Lipa returns to the thrilling sound of disco. Almost immediately, the listener can hear a slick synth-pop sound reminiscent of the 80’s era. However, with Physical, the sonics are much more ominous and eerie than before. While these sounds do continue throughout the song, Physical gradually becomes more high-energy and fast-paced than anticipated. Within 45 seconds, Lipa already has fans dancing out of their seats for the electrifying chorus. As for the meaning, Lipa sings about how passionately attracted she is to her new partner. Every time Lipa is around him, she is filled with adrenaline and just wants to party.
Track 5: Levitating (Personal Favorite)
Once again, Lipa does not hold back with the intense, disco-themed songs. In an interview with Apple Music, Lipa says [about Levitating], “It’s about having fun and meeting someone and falling in love… It’s the feeling when love makes you feel like you’re levitating. It’s otherworldly.“ The sonics in Levitating are very rich and invigorating and truly just makes the listener want to jump out of their chair and dance. The layered sounds are addicting to listen to and after hearing it once, I can assure you that you will want to replay the track again and again.
Track 6: Pretty Please
Pretty Please is truly the first moment the listener can take a breather and relax, especially after Levitating. As Lipa puts it, “The song is about promising someone—or yourself—that you’re going to be really chill in the early stages of the relationship, but then realizing that ‘Yeah, that’s just not me.’” As for the sonics, the song is really not accompanied by many other instruments; most notably are bass, cowbell, percussion, and synth. Although Pretty Please is slower than most of the songs on the album, it still fits into Lipa’s retro ’80s theme perfectly.
Track 7: Hallucinate
Hallucinate serves a 2000’s disco-house vibe and discusses Lipa’s deep affection for someone and how her love changes her perception of reality. Although it is unlike many of the other tracks on the album, it truly does tie the entire work of art together. Lipa said in an interview with Apple Music, “This one’s my festival song. Whenever I make songs, I imagine what they’d be like if I performed them at Glastonbury. I knew there was no way I could do a festival without this song.”
Track 8: Love Again
Love Again is a heartfelt song about Lipa finding love again after a previous relationship that had ended poorly. It’s about finding someone special just when things were seemed to be falling apart, and the shock of such an experience. Lipa sings, “ I can't believe, I can't believe. I finally found someone. I'll sink my teeth in disbelief. 'Cause you're the one that I want.” Love Again samples the trumpet motif from the 1997 UK number 1 song, Your Woman by White Town. The track features a background of strings and is just an upbeat, joyous dance song about finding love again.
Track 9: Break My Heart
Is there any possible way Dua Lipa can top the electrifying, nu-disco songs at the beginning of the album? Yes, absolutely. Break My Heart opens with a simple bass, but eventually gains other sounds from a synth and even a cowbell. As the song progresses, the sonics practically beg the listener to stand up and move. Despite the fun music, Break My Heart is a song about Dua Lipa finding her new lover and having doubts that her relationship will end poorly. She loves her partner dearly, but is worried that he will break her heart and she will never be able to recover. As Lipa describes it, “It’s the whole thing of being scared to be too happy…”
Track 10: Good In Bed
The title of this track essentially speaks for itself. . . Lipa is singing about her romantic relationships and desires with her new lover. She loves her new partner and feels comfortable sharing it freely with the world.
Track 11: Boys Will Be Boys
To conclude the album, Dua Lipa reminds listeners of a message that was introduced in the first track– women empowerment. In Boys Will Be Boys, Lipa sings, “Boys will be, boys will be, boys will be, boys will be boys, but girls will be women.” This line has many different meanings, but it mainly refers to the idea that girls will grow up to be more mature and well-adjusted than boys. Girls deal with many more societal pressures and unrealistic media standards than boys do, and Lipa acknowledges that these issues help motivate girls to act older and ultimately become women. Sonically, Dua Lipa ends the album with an extravagant arrangement of strings and many layers of voices to help reinforce the importance of this topic.
Conclusion:
After 37 minutes of disco-themed music, it is safe to say that Dua Lipa did not disappoint with Future Nostalgia. Not only is it filled with upbeat and electrifying tracks, but it also manages to include some more earnest ones, which convey important messages. On Future Nostalgia, Dua Lipa is here for a good time, but isn’t afraid to get serious.
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