Dua Lipa shared how she crafted her hit Barbie movie song Dance The Night on Monday’s episode of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on NBC.
‘So initially when we had the brief from Greta and Barbie was heavily influenced by disco and we wanted to make it a fun disco song,’ Dua said referencing Barbie director Greta Gerwig.
‘It’s all about Barbie’s big day ever. And then she starts having an existential crisis and she starts thinking about death. And it’s in that moment where it’s like okay, how do we create a song that encapsulates a really fun disco party but at the same time has these underlying shaky feelings,’ Dua said.
The 28-year-old singer, while wearing a red shirt, matching skirt and black tights, said they first leaned into the turmoil aspect, but then decided it didn’t work when they saw the picture.
Dua’s song for the movie, Dance the Night, was written with Caroline Ailin and produced by Andrew Wyatt and Mark Ronson with contributions from the Picard Brothers.
‘We changed the lyrics quite a bit and then we started to write it like a score,’ Dua said.
Dua said they paired the lyrics to dance moves and matched the song to the film.
‘It was really, really fun, I absolutely loved it,’ Dua said.
Jimmy pointed out that Dua made three cameos in the film.
‘I loved it,’ Dua said. ‘I have to say, being in a fishtail I’d do it more often. I was being carried around everywhere. I couldn’t move so I was just constantly being held. I definitely enjoyed my diva moment.’
Jimmy congratulated her on scoring two Grammy nominations for Dance The Night and asked her how it felt to have the song of the summer.
‘It felt so good first of all to hear it out and about and then just to see people’s reaction,’ Dua said. ‘First, because this song came out before the film and to see people’s reaction after the film, I felt like it just kept growing and surprising me every time.’
Jimmy also asked her about her newsletter Service 95 and how it kept growing. He asked her about interviewing Apple’s Tim Cook. Jimmy told her it was a great interview.
‘I think sometimes you have to ask the hard questions,’ Dua said. ‘You don’t get the opportunity to have Tim Cook in your house very often.’
Dua talked about her new single titled Houdini and how she played with her social media, putting things up and talking them down like an escape artist. She also shared that she just released an extended version with a new verse.
‘This is going to be on your third album,’ Jimmy said. ‘Are there any Easter eggs out there about the album that I don’t know?’
‘I don’t want to give too much away,’ Dua said. ‘I’ll come back next time and I’ll spill all the tea.’
Jimmy, who was accused of creating a ‘toxic work environment’ in a September article, asked Dua to share something about the album’s vibe.
‘I’m going for more of a psychedelic pop vibe,’ Dua said. ‘But this new record, I made with my friends Kevin Parker, Tobias Jesse Jr., Danny Hall and Caroline Ailin. And it was kind of made like a band. For the most part. Most of the songs we did together.’
Dua said she wanted to bring an organic live element into her new album.
‘When I was touring for a year, I just started to fall in love with the song and the live element,’ Dua said. ‘I just want to bring all of that into this new record. I’m very excited.’
Dua also took part in a playful skit with Jimmy where they told silly made-up stories while acting as piano players ‘Hal and Val’ playing holiday songs.
Dua also took part in a playful skit with Jimmy where they told silly made-up stories while acting as piano players ‘Hal and Val’ playing holiday songs along with Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter as Leonard from PetCo
The singer has been promoting her latest single Houdini that she released last month in support of her upcoming third studio album.
The London native first appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in 2016, which also was her first US television performance.
She later returned in December 2019 to promote Don’t Start Now and her second album.
Dua also was on the NBC talk show in March 2022 shortly after kicking off her Future Nostalgia tour.