The 67th annual Grammy Awards nominations list is dominated by women in the major categories — including Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, Charli XCX, Chappell Roan and Sabrina Carpenter — but Dua Lipa was missing from the group.
Lipa, 29, who released her third studio album, Radical Optimism, in May, reacted to the snub during an interview with Billboard published on Monday, December 16.
“I’m so proud of Radical Optimism and where it’s brought me. I love that album, and I’m having the time of my life performing it live, and I’ve been able to do things that I thought I could only dream of this year, so I’m really grateful,” the singer said. “Although it would have been nice to be recognized by your industry — especially as a woman — I’m so proud seeing so many incredible female artists nominated at the Grammys this year.”
Lipa has previously done very well with the Recording Academy, with 10 Grammy nominations and three wins to date. At the 63rd annual Grammy awards in 2021, she received a whopping six nominations and won Best Pop Vocal Album for 2020’s Future Nostalgia. This year, she’s happy to see other women shine, including her longtime pal Charli, 32, who received six nods, including Album of the Year for the massively successful Brat.
“I love her so much and she’s always been a really good friend of mine and been so supportive from day one. She deserves all the flowers,” Lipa said of Charli. “She’s worked her arse off, and it’s so beautiful to see her get the recognition she deserves. She’s really stuck to her guns and allowed herself to be creative in her own way, and it’s paid off. That’s the best thing that can ever happen to an artist. She’s so deserving of every moment.”
While Radical Optimism won’t be taking home any Grammys, Lipa still feels like a winner.
“It’s honestly been the best year of my life,” she said. “Overall I’m really happy with where I am. I don’t think it really matters in the grand scheme of things where I am, where I want to be and where I’m going. It doesn’t change the way I feel about the record at all.”
Lipa knew she wanted to pivot sonically for Radical Optimism, which she described as a psychedelic-pop tribute to U.K. rave culture during a January interview with Rolling Stone. She told Billboard that the success of the disco-influenced Future Nostalgia gave her the “confidence” to experiment.
“It gave me the freedom … to be like, ‘You know who I really want to make an album with? [Tame Impala’s] Kevin Parker. And I want to do something a bit different,’” she recalled.
In addition to forging new creative frontiers, Lipa also debuted a new romance this year. Us Weekly confirmed her relationship with Callum Turner in January. The pair have been going strong ever since, keeping a low profile but sharing sweet photos of each other via social media.
“Dua and Callum spend almost all their time together and are nearly inseparable,” a source exclusively told Us in March. “They travel together, they’ve met each other’s families and they’re very serious about one another.”
