Dua Lipa moves album release forward after it leaks online

Image copyright Dua Lipa / Instagram

Dua Lipa has announced she is bringing the release date of her new album forward after it leaked online.

Future Nostalgia will come out a week early, on Friday 27 March, said the star in a tearful Instagram live.

But the Brit award-winner said she had mixed feelings about releasing new music during the coronavirus outbreak.

“I’ve been a little bit conflicted about whether it’s the right thing to do during this time because lots of people are suffering,” she said.

“I’m not sure if I’m even doing the right thing,” she continued, “but I think the thing we need the most at the moment is music, and we need joy and we need to be trying to see the light.

“I hope it makes you smile and I hope it makes you dance and I hope I make you proud.”

The star also announced the postponement of her world tour amid the coronavirus pandemic.

“I tried to hold out for as long as possible but I can see that, at the moment, things aren’t changing and for the safety of everyone around us, we really need to be careful and cautious,” said the star.

She added that new dates for the UK and European legs of the tour would be published on Tuesday, and all tickets would be honoured for the new dates.

Speaking from her home in London, the star frequently wiped away tears and apologised for getting emotional.

“I’ve been welling up a little bit, just a lot over the past couple of weeks, just with the uncertainty and everything,” she explained.

Future Nostalgia is the follow-up to Lipa’s self-titled debut album, which earned her two Brit Awards and the Grammy for best new artist.

One of 2020’s most highly-anticipated pop albums, it leaked in full over the weekend. It is not known whether this prompted the decision to move the release date forward, although it seems likely, given the potential impact of a pirated version on streams and sales.

Lipa also announced that the album’s third single Break My Heart – which samples INXS’s Need You Tonight – would premiere on Wednesday with a new video.

Government criticised

After announcing the news, she spent half an hour answering questions from fans on everything from her Netflix recommendations (she went for the crime drama Ozark) to whether she has any pets (yes, two baby goats called Funky and Bam Bam).

But she also implored fans to stay indoors and help slow the spread of coronavirus, noting that her co-writer Andrew Watt had diagnosed positive for the disease.

She urged people to “go on his social media and read a little bit about how scary this is,” so they won’t be complacent about falling ill.

“You might think you’re young and you won’t be so affected by the virus [but] I know a lot of young people that do have it and have struggled with it,” said the 24-year-old.

“I don’t think we should be so small-minded. It really does affect you and we really just need to look after each other.”

Lipa also criticised the government’s response to the outbreak, saying more action should have been taken sooner.

“I feel like certain governments around the world, especially in the UK, aren’t really making a massive difference and haven’t put us on lockdown,” she said.

“But I really can’t stress enough how important it is for us to stay inside.”

Her comments came as the UK government debated new emergency powers to tackle the virus and urged parents to keep their children at home unless “absolutely necessary”.

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