Synopsis
In a vivid blue room, Dua Lipa confronts a second version of herself, with each persona representing a different stage of getting over a breakup. Dressed in contrasting orange and purple suits, the two Duas lead matching groups of dancers into an escalating choreographic confrontation. Their movements shift from hostility to synchronization as the emotional tension subsides. By the end, the stronger and more vulnerable selves acknowledge one another, turning the breakup narrative into a visual statement about self-acceptance and empowerment.
Factoids & Trivia
- The video premiered on January 12, 2018, as the fourth single-era visual from Lipa's self-titled debut album.
- The concept was developed with Mosaert, the creative collective associated with Stromae. The team wanted to express the song's emotional conflict without depicting the breakup too literally, leading to the idea of "Dua versus Dua."
- Lipa described the shoot as her toughest and most challenging video to film. It took 22 hours and was built around a single continuous tracking shot.
- The production combined motion-controlled camera work, dynamic lighting changes, visual effects and carefully aligned passes to create the encounters between Lipa and her double.
- Choreography was created by Marion Motin. The camera moves and dance phrases were planned together, with early versions tested through sketches, phone footage and an animatic.
- Several discarded ideas were considered before the final concept, including a faceless man, a wedding bloodbath and an ex-boyfriend's head used as a bowling ball.
- The video won Best Pop Video - UK at the 2018 UK Music Video Awards and received nominations for Best Choreography at the 2018 MTV Video Music Awards and British Video of the Year at the 2019 Brit Awards.
- On November 28, 2019, Lipa reused the image of the blue Dua kissing the red Dua on the forehead to mark Albanian Flag Day. The image was edited to feature the coats of arms of Kosovo and Albania.