Excitement is building as Dua Lipa will play the first of two shows at Anfield tonight. The 29-year-old will bring her Radical Optimism tour to L4 tonight and tomorrow.
The popstar has a strong connection with the city because of the way Liverpool FC fans have adopted her pop hit, One Kiss. The bond was forged in 2018 when Dua performed the hit song as part of the opening ceremony for the 2018 Champions League final between the Reds and Spanish side Real Madrid.
The Liverpool FC end sung along to every word and it has since been a fixture of the Anfield songbook. Although Dua is not a Liverpool FC fan, she has claimed she feels like an honorary Red in previous interviews.
Reflecting on the huge impact of the song in an interview with LiverpoolFC.com in 2020, Dua said she was blown away by the way Liverpool fans embraced the song in 2018, as she felt nervous ahead of the gig.
She said: “One of the highlights of the night was definitely seeing the video of all the Liverpool fans chanting along to One Kiss afterwards. I felt very honoured. I had never played a show of that size before, I don’t think I have since!
“I get really nervous before I perform anywhere, let alone the Champions League final. I remember standing at the side of the pitch with my palms sweating waiting to run on and get into position.
“I was so full of adrenaline it was over very quickly and I remember running off the pitch at the end with two of my tour dancers I was very lucky to have the support of people back home right there in the stadium in Kyiv. I’m still shocked when watching it back seeing all these fans singing along to my song!
“I’m always extremely grateful for the support. It’s heart-warming and I’m very lucky.” Dua has since become one of the biggest popstars in the world and regularly sells out stadiums.
The singer is looking forward to bringing One Kiss to its spiritual home tonight as she issued a message ahead of the Merseyside shows. Sharing photos from the tour so far, she wrote: “Guess joining the circus wasn’t such a bad idea. ANFIELD NIGHT 1 TONIGHT!!!! LET’S GOOOOOO BABY!!!!!”
Radical Optimism is the third studio album by the artist. The album was preceded by three singles, “Houdini”, “Training Season” and “Illusion”, all of which peaked within the top 10 of the UK Singles Chart.
In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at the top the UK Albums Chart and scored the biggest opening week for a British female in three years.
The Radical Optimism Tour kicked off in November 2024 and will conclude in Mexico on December 5, 2025. For the UK leg of the tour, Dove Cameron has been announced as one of the official Radical Optimism tour supporting acts.
Joining her is Alessi Rose, an indie-pop singer who served as the opening act for Noah Kahan’s 2024 tour, with songs including ‘Say Ur Mine’ and ‘Hate This Part’.
A spokesperson for the star confirmed to the ECHO this morning that the stage times will be the same as those outlined for the Wembley Stadium shows.
Alessi Rose will perform at 6.15pm, Dove Cameron will take to the stage at 7.15pm and Dua Lipa will entertain the Anfield crowd from 8.15pm onwards.
Speculation has turned to whether the star will continue the surprise guest trend for the remaining UK dates, which just so happen to be in Liverpool. At Wembley Dua surprised her fans by inviting special guest Jay Kay to perform his band Jamiroquai’s 1996 hit ‘Virtual Insanity’.
Dua ramped up the excitement when she brought out Brat artist Charli XCX for the second show for a joint rendition of ‘360’. Speculation is rampant on which surprise guests will close the UK leg of the tour – with notable names including Miley Cyrus, Harry Styles and Olivia Rodrigo.
