Dua Lipa: "Training Season" was Inspired by a "Bad Date" | FULL INTERVIEW | The Drew Barrymore Show

been being here and it's because of do act that you're all here so that she could talk about her radical optimism. Um, and it's a testament to you and you guys that we're all here. So thank you. Thank you. I'm so fascinated with the fact that you at 15 decided to go to London. Um, you were back and forth from London and Kosovo. Yeah. What did you and your parents discuss to have the belief system that you were capable, you should be trusted, you should be listened to in order to go after your dreams at that age? Yeah, well, it was interesting. So for those that don't know, I was born and raised in London and then and then, um, and then at 11 years old, me and my family decided to move back to Kosovo. And that being because my parents left Kosovo in 92 because of the war. They moved to London. I was born there. And then they always had the dream of going back and being with their family and their friends. And you know, the idea was always to go back to Kosovo. I was very excited. I knew the language fluently. But to me, it was a whole new world. But I just finished year six in London. So everyone was going to go to different high schools. And I was like, instead of going to a different high school, I'm going to a new country. But I was very excited about it. I go to Kosovo, and the experience is quite different. There's more of a sense of a community in a way that maybe in London, it wasn't because London is so big. So when you're younger, you can go out on your own in Kosovo. I feel like I kind of had that trust with my parents at a very young age of 11, 12. I was kind of roaming around with my friends. And I loved living in Kosovo. But it just wasn't the place where I had the opportunity that I felt like I would have in London. And in a place where to me, everything was happening. And so for me, I was like, right, I need to go back to London. I need to try this music thing, because I love it. It's my passion. It's something that I think about every single day. And I guess the conversation that I had with my parents was, I really want to do music. I want to try and see but I have to be in London. And at the same time, I'm going to go to school and, you know, do all my compulsory education because I needed to do my last two years in London in order to then get into university Why did you feel it was important to complete your education? Well, because you could have gone the artistic route and not completed school. I mean, for me, I did my compulsory education in London. And then I decided to take a gap year before university. So I was like, I don't really know what I want to study. I know that I really want to do music and I want to give it a real shot. And I felt like I didn't really want to give myself a plan B, in a way, because I was like, I'm just gonna try and focus on one thing. Because that's the only thing that I really see myself doing. And I think that was kind of the push that I, I needed was just to keep trying on music, singing, performing. But I had a job. So then I went and got a job and I was working in bars and restaurants myself. Did you like that? Did you enjoy that? I loved it. I had so much fun. I had so much fun because I love to connect with people. I love to go out. I love to go dancing. So working in bars and restaurants is just not my style. Come, come, come, come. Thank you. No, but working in bars and restaurants, you get to hang out with people all the time. And then you get to make friends. And you get to make friends. And you get to, you know, you just get to meet all kinds of interesting people. And you have amazing stories. And, you know, you need to have these life experiences. But I would love to know, what did you tell your parents about going to sing in London? And I think this is important because I want to know as a mother myself, who wants to listen to their kids as they realize who they are. I just sat down and told them what my biggest dream was. And that was to make music. And I really needed their support to let me do my thing and go out there and try. And I was like, I'm gonna be really, well, good, as good as I could be. Oh, you've surpassed that. I'm like... And I just needed that. I needed that trust and support and for them to kind of let me go and do that. And, you know, there was a lot of back and forth. There was like, OK, are you sure this is what you want to do? Like, how are we going to do this? What's the safest way to make sure that you're going to be all right in London? And there was another girl from Kosovo who was going to study in London and my parents knew her parents. And so they were like, all right, you can flat share. So we just we lived together and I went and did my thing. She was doing her thing. But it was the trust that my parents gave me. And I think it was just reciprocated. I was every morning when I woke up, I'd be like, right, I'm on my way to school. I'm doing this. I keep them updated. But my parents, they were always my friends as well. But now they're my best friends because they've really just opened that door for me. It's true. I want to talk about Radical Optimism. First of all, this image is so powerful. It needs no words because it evokes so much thoughts and feelings. But I would love to know what your intention was for it. So this image, to me, it was we were shooting for about three days for all the imagery for the album. And we had taken two, only two pictures of this shot. It was really an accidental picture that my immediate response to it was like that to me says radical optimism. And there's something about it that I feel like I look very calm, collected and to me what feels really strong in what should be very dangerous waters with a shark nearby. And Radical Optimism, to me, is about being calm and graceful in the midst of the chaos, in the midst of the madness. It's how do you walk through the fire when things aren't going your way? That's when when you're outside of your comfort zone, that's when you do the most growing. That's when you're most like emotional maturity happens. You have to go through the bad things to get to the good part. I think that is the true essence of Radical Optimism through and through. It's, you know, not necessarily being like you have to be happy all the time, but it's more that things will always get better. If they're not good right now, it will get better. You just have to move through it because this is how you learn, how you progress, how you become more yourself, how you understand yourself better and the world around you. All right, training season, the song about a bad date. Well, I think you could say that it's really OK, so so training season is this is like me in my singledom. I went on a couple of dates, all terrible, and I went into the studio with my friends, Kevin, Tobias and Caroline, and I went in and normally every studio session starts with a little chat, a little gossip. What's happening? What's been going on in my life? And I just go, guys, training season's over. I'm done training up these boys. No more. And so that what started off as a joke turned into a lyric which then blossomed into a song. And then we have training season, which was almost like a manifestation because I believe that the words that I write, I have to be careful what I write because sometimes I feel like they can come true because they become a mantra. Then I say them over and over. So I just got to be careful. You know, I'm like willing this onto myself. Now, if you're done feeling like you're training and we can all embrace that, I would like to learn from that. I feel like I'm on that tipping point as well. I have continually throughout my life made it about the other person. I've also spent many, many years being single, and I have been so incredibly happy. I I've made finally an investment in myself the way I have invested in others my whole life. Talk to me about being single. Well, is it how should we feel about being single? I think singledom is so important. I feel like so often when we find ourselves that we're single, we wish our singledom away looking for someone. Whereas when you're alone, who you are in the silence, when you're doing things that only you want to do, when you're taking care of yourself to hang out with the people that you love without wondering, you know what someone else might want from you, you're constantly taking care of you. That's when you do your most learning. That's also when you become your most, I don't know. You're so self-sufficient that when somebody does come along, you're not codependent, nor are you looking for a relationship that's codependent or needing something of you because you can both be independent in your own. And when you come together, it's wonderful. So that time that's spent alone is so vital to your growth and so important to enjoy the time that you have with yourself. When do you love yourself the most? I think loving yourself, for me, has been a journey. When you're younger, you have all kinds of insecurities and you're learning to love yourself every day. But to me, I'm like, if I can love myself a little bit more every day, be thankful for my body that's brought me here, that allows me to do what I love, that allows me to travel and dance and perform, I should be grateful for it. You pick a thing that you love about yourself and how you are with other people, I think that is also a way, how you are with others is a way to also love yourself, but also to take the time out, to take the time alone, to give yourself that grace, to not be hard on yourself. That is incredibly important. I think when I show myself compassion and grace and when things don't go right and I go, it's OK, you know, baby steps. If you just do one percent better than you did yesterday, maybe you're on the right step, you know, you're on the right path. It doesn't have to be zero to one hundred. Just one little thing that's a little bit better than yesterday. We have to be kinder to ourselves. We have that little voice. It's again, it's the same thing. We've got to be careful what we say to ourselves because we're going to end up believing it. And so the more nice things we say to ourselves, the more that becomes the mantra that we want to channel and you start feeling better. Evidently, it just naturally happens. So why don't we make the mantras and the things that we say to ourselves nicer so we can progress and grow rather than say demeaning, negative, mean things? Because you wouldn't say that about someone else. The things that you say about yourself, you're never going to say that about someone else. So actually think about that for a second and be your own best friend and be nice to yourself and say lovely things and see what happens. I have a couple of questions for you. You know, just some hot takes on some situations in life. A little game I like to call would do a do it. But also don't even get me started on how well our names work together, Drew. It's another subject. But I keep saying it ever since I knew this was going to take place. I'm like, drew a drew a drew a. I love it. Oh, thank you. OK, would you would you dance at the club with your parents? One thousand percent. Yes. I one night and ran into them at a club. Yes. Oh, like my parents go out way more than I do. Like they're out. These people are out dancing. I mean, I got it from somewhere, but they just they love it. They can go harder. Your parents are you my parents? It's unbelievable. But yeah, it was like three o'clock in the morning. I go to a club and I bump into them and they're having way more fun than me. How cool is that? I just love that. OK, we do use someone else's toothbrush. I would have when I was younger. No, no, no. Toothbrushes, too. That's just one step too far, I think. Do I would not do I would not do that. Would you enter a hot dog eating contest for charity? Yes. Oh, yeah. I love hot dogs. That sounds perfect. OK, perfect. Would you not wash your hair for one week? Oh, someone's like, no, I was like, yeah. Yes, I would. You know what? It's actually better for your hair. Natural oil. Not to not to wash it as often. It depends what kind of import. Like if I have to be on telly, then I'll wash my hair. You know, I've gone a week. I can't I can't. I can't lie. Would you look through someone's medicine cabinet? No, that's also I feel like like that's so it's such an invasion. It's such an invasion. Even the question when I asked, it felt like an invasion. OK, no, no, no, no. OK, good. I thought so. Would you leave the house wearing pajamas? Yes. Yeah, definitely. Definitely. On a face mask sometimes. Absolutely. Would Dua be my friend? One thousand percent. Dura. That's it. The dream is real. Ladies and gentlemen, optimism is out. Talented, unlimited high school opportunity. Thank you so much. And I can't believe I got to be a part of this, too. When you were in the choir or wanted to be in the choir when you were younger, is it true you were told you cannot be in the choir? Yeah. It was it was a school assembly and the the music teacher was auditioning for the choir and I really wanted to be a part of it with the kids. And I put my hand up and I was like, I'm going to get up and audition. I was so nervous. And he's like, all right, get up. This is early morning. I'm trying to think I was maybe in year three at this time. So really young, I was seven. Anyway, I stand up. It's like all the older kids as like the classes move back towards the back of the room. I was so nervous. And the teacher starts playing on the piano and I have to like match the. The key and I was singing on the high notes, nothing comes out, just air, basically, like I just couldn't reach it. That's so refreshing to hear. And I couldn't and the teacher was just like, OK, maybe next time. And that was it. And I was so upset and so embarrassed. And I was like, oh, I'm not going to have, you know, my my part in the in the choir. And so I sat back down and I left it and laced down the line. I joined like the lower vocal set because I could reach the lower notes much easier. But I just love to sing. And so regardless of that experience, I decided that I was going to go to singing lessons on Saturdays and I was going to keep singing. And it was my teacher there who saw something in me. And he got me in front of the class and was like, right. I want you to sing. This was I was nine at this time and he got me to sing. And he told me I was I was good and I had something and there was something special about my voice. And he changed my class and he put me in with the 14 and 15 year olds. And I was so scared. I was like, oh, my God, not the teenagers, I just can't do it. And again, nine years old, he gets you to sing in front of the 14 and 15 year olds on a Saturday morning. And again, he helps boost my confidence. He's like, you've got something special. I want you to stay with the older set and just do your lessons with them. And I stayed and I just loved it. And it just helped my my passion blossom. And I think sometimes it's important in life. You just find a mentor or someone whose opinion you admire or you look up to. And all it takes is for them to just be like, hey, you're good enough. And there's something, you know, you should keep working at it and hold on to that because it means something if it's going to push you to to work hard towards something that you love. You know, those people are incredibly important. And rejection and being told you can't or you're not up to par is a part of life. Definitely. It will not be red carpets and open doors for every single thing that we try. And so how do we handle that? How do we not allow someone else to dictate our confidence completely and be able to take it away? That's why we have to have it in ourselves so that someone else can't completely give it to you, because then they can take it away. And if they take it away from you, how do you get it back? It's got to be this constant developing of our self. But you need people to believe in you. And we're going to encounter rejection and we're going to find someone who believes in us. And that just seems like such a real part of the journey. Who do you admire? Who do you believe in? I believe in you. Oh, I believe it. I think I think it's it's and you have to believe in yourself as well, because when no, you know, when you face rejection, I just said it. No, but when you face when you face rejection, you have to be the person who's going to support your dreams and your goals, and you have to pick yourself back up and you have to be like, this is something that I love and I'm not going to take no for an answer. And that's really important. You have to be your number one fan to begin with and then see what happens. Time 100 just named you one of the most influential people you are on the cover. Yes, yes, you are on the cover. Cover's amazing. It's a beautiful portrait. It's it's fitting of you. Thank you. It honors you in the way you should be honored. Patti Smith wrote your intro. Yes, yes. How did that make you feel? And wow, Patti Smith. Yeah, I know. It's it's it's absolutely surreal and mind blowing on all fronts. I'm so grateful. And I feel like I have to pinch myself every single day of my life because I really I get to I get to wake up and do really incredible things, things that I've always dreamed of and to also have a wonderful tribute written by Patti Smith for me is a dream come true. And Patti is someone who I've always looked up to. And she's shown me so much kindness and generosity. And also, I've just learned so much from her before even getting to know her a little bit. And Patti so kindly joined me. I do a book club every month. And you are so smart that it's the most potent thing. You know, you you you you're a voracious reader. You speak about important subjects. You are highly intelligent, globally aware. And what I love about that is there's so many as you guys are in school. I didn't go to school. I'm self-educated. And there are so many roads that lead to happiness and intelligence. But the important part is to get to both places. However hard the struggle is to get there, keep going. You know, why was being such an aware, astute, intelligent person who doesn't have blinders on, you know, but looks out and discusses things? And why was that important to you alongside of becoming this incredible, global record breaking artist? You could have picked one lane that would have been enough, but you dual pathed it. Well, I I don't know. I've always loved to read since I was really young. And I think I just love to dive into a world that I didn't know. And I wanted to learn different perspectives and understand emotions in a different way. I just I've always been very curious of that. And I guess these are just like seeds that I've planted throughout my whole life. And now I'm so grateful that my music gives me this incredible platform to connect with people through my music. But then I thought if I could turn one hobby into a job, maybe I could, you know, turn my my book love into into another. And, you know, like I said, I spoke to Patti Smith and I read her book, Just Kiss. Have you guys read that? Yeah. If you haven't, please do. It's it's absolutely incredible. And it hurts when it's over. Oh, my gosh. Because you're you feel like. But the love, the relationship, the friendship, the the camaraderie that her and Robert made before. Exactly. That Patti and Robert had with each other is so moving and. Just the opportunity to speak to her and to other authors about the stories that they've chosen to put out into the world is so deeply moving and beautiful to share with other people, because I just think it's so of service to all of us. All right. I want to turn it over to you guys. We have some questions from our amazing audience. Hey, Drew. Hey, Dua. My name is Lydia. I'm a sophomore drama major at TU. A lot of actors. But my question is kind of like a situation. So my best friend, she recently she recently got into a relationship. Right. And once she got into that relationship, she just completely stopped talking to me. So what would you do in that situation? OK, so one, I'd be really upset, too. I think it's so difficult when and it can happen to all of us. You kind of lose sight a little bit of what's around you because you're so in the moment and you're excited about, you know, the new person that's in your life. I think one, be patient with it a little bit just while they kind of find their feet. I feel like they'll come back and they'll feel, you know, maybe a little embarrassed, maybe a little bad about this moment, that they've neglected their friendships. I think it's also OK if you maybe sit down and have a conversation with your friend and tell them how you feel and be like, I'm all for your relationship. I love seeing you happy. I love that. All you want to do is spend time with this new person. But also, I miss you. And I'd love if maybe we could hang out a little bit more or make time for each other. And that's a relationship, too. And you want to nurture that. And I think, I think your friend will really respect you going up and tell them how you feel. Hello, Drua. Hey, it's working! What's your name? My name is Marco. I'm a sophomore drama major at TU. Like when you get rejected from a role or something, how do you really lift yourself up from that? What motivates you to get back up when someone says no? Proving them wrong. You know, it's also about, I don't know, being in competition with yourself a little bit and being like, it's OK, I'm going to get better. I'm going to work harder. I'm going to try my best. I think that's also just so important to remember that the only thing you want to do is just see the baby steps, see the growth, see how you're changing and evolving yourself. I think that is the best way to measure your own success. You just want to do a little bit better than you did yesterday. I think also as you build the bricks and the foundation and you prove them wrong, that that never becomes a chip on your shoulder. Everybody's nose. Never let them be your own. A reason to be angry, but to live a life where the rejection makes you stronger and not angrier is so important and has been such a North Star for me. But proving them wrong is awesome. And that can be a journey not against someone else, but for yourself. And that will be such a benefit to others in the end. And I think of you when I say that, because had you taken no for an answer, had you ever given up, had you never stopped trying, then we wouldn't have you in the world and that wouldn't be OK. So I trust her advice implicitly. And we have to do it with a level of, you know. Of of of of continued kindness also, I think. Thank you very much. Thank you. Question. Hello. Hi. I remember how you were talking about manifesting things through your music, and I thought that was so interesting. And I was wondering how you kind of discovered that you could do that. Last question. Hello. Hi. I'm Lily. I'm a musical theater major here at Talent Unlimited. I'm a freshman. So I remember how you were talking about manifesting things through your music. And I thought that was so interesting. And I was wondering how you kind of discovered that you could do that. Or like, do you have any stories connected to that? Or like, how do you feel about that spiritually? Well, I think just the idea that when I write songs, I always like them to have a positive twist somewhere, because. I think when I get up on stage, I had a song on my last album. It was the title track. That song I'd written on a day when I wasn't feeling so good about myself. I wasn't feeling so confident. I wasn't feeling like at the top of my game, like spiritually and emotionally. And I was like, you know what, I'm going to write a song that's the complete opposite of how I'm feeling. And night after night, when I got up on stage and I performed that song, I felt all those things. I felt strong. I felt empowered. I felt tough. I felt the most myself. And I felt like I manifested that feeling and that emotion into my life. And I think that's also really important that sometimes you write the songs and the stories that you need. That is incredibly important. And that's been a driving force for me that in every song that I make, there's always going to be a little something that's hopeful, because if I'm going to sing them for years or if people are going to, you know, they're going to live online. So whoever's going to listen to them, I want them to feel like there's always some light in it, regardless of what it is. And so whether that's Dance Crying or whether it's, you know, yes, or whether it's a song that's just been, you know, written to just make me feel more confident, all of those are important because I hope that that translates to something that's way bigger than me. So that's how I do it as a form of manifestation. I love that. Thank you, Lily. I just got so much out of that answer. I really did. I will now pull that wisdom into my arsenal and it will better me. Thank you for that. Thank you. As a last question, for Radical Optimism, what are you most optimistic about right now? I am the most optimistic about life overall, everything that comes with it. It's just I'm also optimistic and in the future and the kids and, you know, you guys have the power. I'm the most optimistic about the next generation. Ladies and gentlemen, Radical Optimism is out.