Dua Lipa’s Radical Optimism: Grounded, Dancy and Personal
"I'm at a place in my career where I feel really confident, it took me so long to get to this place," Dua Lipa told Zane Lowe in one of her many promotional interviews leading up to her third studio album, Radical Optimism. This confidence and growth Lipa talks about is palpable throughout the 11 romantic boppy tales with an optimistic flare that she includes on her latest record.
The maturity of Radical Optimism speaks for itself, mainly in the production and songwriting, which see Lipa at her most vulnerable. It took the pop icon a while to be fully confessional in her lyric writing. Yet, it becomes obvious as you move from one track to another, that she is not trying to repeat the success of something that has already happened. She is not replicating any of her sounds or previous records, taking a big step away from 80’s disco. If her last album, Future Nostalgia, was about escaping our lives during lockdown, then Radical Optimism is about facing, head on, our current realities that have brought us to the moment where we are today.
“Illusion”, the first song Dua Lipa wrote for this record, on the 11th of July 2022 with Caroline Ailin and Tobias Jesso Jr and its producers Danny L. Harle and Kevin Parker, kicked them off and gave them confidence as a group to continue crafting tracks for the record. The next day, she wrote "Happy for You", the album closer and the rest is history. Even though this album sounds exactly like a Dua Lipa record, it is vastly different thematically from its predecessors. Radical Optismism is all about the idea of “rolling with the punches, (…) always seeing the positive side of things, always being able to grow and move forward and change your perspective regardless of what is happening in your life, whether its heartbreak, friendship or whether it’s just growing and seeing things differently,” Dua Lipa confesses in her latest Apple Music Interview.
This growth she talks about extensively on her promotional campaign, shines particularly in her vocals especially on tracks like “Falling Forever”. On this track that Lipa describes as her manifestation song, she lets it all out in a way we had never heard the popstar showcase her lower raspy tenor.
From the sassy kiss-off post-breakup track "IDGAF," released on her debut studio album in 2017, where Dua Lipa openly expresses not “giving a fuck” about an ex-lover, to the heartfelt closing track "Happy For You," the evolution is striking. "Happy For You," is perhaps the most personally revealing of Lipa's real-life optimism, where the singer-songwriter expresses a vulnerable sentiment while witnessing someone she once shared a connection with moving on. The closing track of the album embodies the emotional complexity of growth and acceptance, reflecting a pop star deeply aware of her artistic evolution as much as her personal journey.
In fact, Dua Lipa wrote this entire album in diary form, in a notebook that she had newly bought with the mere desire to journal and reflect more on her day to day. It all started when she initially jotted the words Radical Optismism on its first page.
However, a lot of mysteries pertain. Who is the enigmatic Maria that Lipa still feels when she’s gone? Her Jolene-esque track “Maria” carries the familiar pop trope of a vaguely Sapphic fixation with her ex-partner's new flame. In the chorus, Lipa's impassioned cries —"Maria! I know you're gone, but I feel ya when we're alone"—echo with a profound curiosity and emotional evolution that permeates the album, resonating on nearly every track.
At its core, Radical Optismism is drenched in pop tradition whose fresh dancy hits like “Illusion” and “Houdini” will become soundtracks to our summers. Although the album's sonic palette falls yet again under the pop star's signature dance pop category, Lipa's vocals exude the pop freshness and confidence that will continue solidifying her journey into becoming one of pop music's most influential figures today.
This album comes as Miley Cyrus’s Endless Summer Vacation’s little sister from its aquatic sun dazed visuals, the themes of hope and reckless romance to its synth-heavy outros, it is not the red and pink sunset record that was promised but an exploration of how it feels to take off your rose-tinted glasses and roll with the reality of it all.
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After reading this article, Claude AI suggested that an essay exploring the the theme of "Sapphic Fixation" in pop music might be interesting. We agreed and asked him to draft something, with citations included. Here is what Claude had to say on the topic:
Title: Exploring the "Sapphic Fixation" in Pop Music: A Recurring Trope of Desire and Complexity
Introduction
In the landscape of popular music, the trope of the "Sapphic fixation" has emerged as a recurring theme, capturing the attention of audiences and critics alike. This trope, which involves a singer expressing desire or longing for their ex-partner's new female love interest, has been employed by numerous artists across generations, from Dolly Parton's "Jolene" to Taylor Swift's "You Belong With Me" and, most recently, Dua Lipa's "Maria" from her upcoming album "Radical Optimism." This essay will delve into the complexities of the "Sapphic fixation" in pop music, exploring its emotional depth, its resonance with audiences, and its potential for representing queer experiences in mainstream culture.
The Emotional Complexity of the "Sapphic Fixation"
At its core, the "Sapphic fixation" trope explores the intricate emotions that arise when confronted with a romantic rival. Songs like "Jolene" and "You Belong With Me" capture the feelings of jealousy, admiration, and longing that the singer experiences as they watch their former partner move on with another woman. The Sapphic undertones add an extra layer of emotional complexity, as the singer grapples with desires that may not align with societal expectations of heteronormativity (Dhaenens, 2016).
The intensity of these emotions is often conveyed through the singer's vocal performance and the song's production. In "Jolene," Dolly Parton's plaintive vocals and the song's simple acoustic arrangement emphasize the raw vulnerability of the narrator's plea (Edwards, 2018). Similarly, Taylor Swift's "You Belong With Me" employs a catchy, upbeat melody that belies the song's underlying sense of longing and frustration (Daly, 2019). These artistic choices serve to heighten the emotional impact of the "Sapphic fixation" trope, drawing listeners into the singer's complex inner world.
Resonance with Audiences
The enduring popularity of songs that employ the "Sapphic fixation" trope suggests that audiences strongly resonate with the universal themes of unrequited love and the pain of watching someone you care for move on with someone else. The Sapphic subtext adds an additional layer of intrigue and relatability, as it taps into the common human experience of desiring someone who is seemingly unattainable or off-limits (Diamond, 2016).
Moreover, the "Sapphic fixation" trope provides a space for queer listeners to see their experiences and desires reflected in mainstream music, even if only subtly. For LGBTQ+ audiences, these songs can serve as a form of validation and representation, acknowledging the existence and legitimacy of same-sex attraction within the heteronormative framework of popular music (McMillan, 2017). The trope's popularity also highlights the growing acceptance and visibility of queer experiences in mainstream culture, even as it remains somewhat coded or implicit.
Subverting Expectations and Pushing Boundaries
While the "Sapphic fixation" trope often operates within a heteronormative framework, some artists have used it to subvert expectations and push boundaries. For example, in her song "Honey," Kehlani explicitly celebrates queer love and desire, openly addressing another woman as the object of her affection (Weiss, 2018). By employing the trope in a more direct and unapologetic manner, Kehlani challenges the idea that the "Sapphic fixation" must remain subtle or implied.
Similarly, King Princess's "1950" reimagines the classic "Sapphic fixation" narrative from an explicitly queer perspective, with the singer unabashedly expressing her desire for another woman (Baltin, 2018). These examples demonstrate how the trope can be adapted and reinterpreted to challenge heteronormative assumptions and provide more direct representation for LGBTQ+ experiences in pop music.
Conclusion
As Dua Lipa explores the "Sapphic fixation" trope in her song "Maria," she joins a rich tradition of pop artists who have used their music to delve into the complexities of desire and the fluidity of sexual attraction. By examining the emotional depth, resonance with audiences, and potential for subversion within this trope, we can gain a greater understanding of how popular music reflects and shapes cultural attitudes towards queerness and same-sex desire. As the "Sapphic fixation" continues to evolve and be reinterpreted by new generations of artists, it remains a powerful tool for exploring the intricacies of human emotion and desire within the ever-changing landscape of popular music.
References:
Baltin, S. (2018). King Princess on Her Debut Single '1950,' Queer Representation, and Being Inspired by Lorde. Billboard. https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop/8280584/king-princess-1950-interview-lorde
Daly, R. (2019). Taylor Swift's 'You Belong With Me': A Queer Reading. The Odyssey Online. https://www.theodysseyonline.com/taylor-swifts-you-belong-with-me-a-queer-reading
Dhaenens, F. (2016). Reading Gay Music Videos: An Inquiry into the Representation of Sexual Diversity in Contemporary Popular Music Videos. Popular Music and Society, 39(5), 532-546. https://doi.org/10.1080/03007766.2015.1068530
Diamond, L. M. (2016). Sexual Fluidity in Male and Females. Current Sexual Health Reports, 8(4), 249-256. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11930-016-0092-z
Edwards, L. (2018). Dolly Parton's 'Jolene' Still Haunts Singers and Songwriters. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/music/dolly-partons-jolene-still-haunts-singers-and-songwriters/2018/03/30/2f6c8d6c-342d-11e8-94fa-32d48460b955_story.html
McMillan, S. (2017). The Subversive Power of Queer Representation in Pop Music. Medium. https://medium.com/@smcmillan/the-subversive-power-of-queer-representation-in-pop-music-e0afb71f9c26
Weiss, A. (2018). Kehlani Explores the Intricacies of Queer Desire on New Single 'Honey'. Teen Vogue. https://www.teenvogue.com/story/kehlani-honey-queer-desire
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