Dua Lipa’s Future Nostalgia Tour Is 2022’s Best Dance Party

Dua Lipa only had one request after entering the Future Nostalgia Tour stage: Get physical. The singer opened the show with an ’80s aerobics-inspired performance of “Physical,” demonstrating the most optimal and fun ways to break a sweat during the rest of the concert.

Lipa kept the momentum going with her breakout hit “New Rules” and “Be the One,” both from her 2017 self-titled debut album, showcasing how far she’s come since playing shows to only a few people. “There’s a lot of collective childhood dreams on this stage coming true,” she said.

“How many of you have been here since my first album?” she asked the crowd at New York City’s Madison Square Garden. “It feels surreal seeing faces in the front row that were at Mercury Lounge. I can’t believe that we’re at MSG —  it feels crazy.”

Lipa packed the show with hits and deep cuts from the tour’s namesake album Future Nostalgia, everything from from the country-fied slow disco jam “Love Again” to unofficial quarantine anthem “Break My Heart.”

While the singer kept the focus on her plethora of dance-pop hits, she still incorporated some Katy Perry-esque whimsical absurdity, singing “We’re Good” to an inflatable lobster.

Lipa’s second album avoided the sophomore slump and sent her stardom to new heights, becoming one of the top 10 biggest albums of 2020 worldwide and winning the Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album in 2021.

The show was attended by stars like Saturday Night Live’s Bowen Yang, singer Arlo Parks, “Electricity” collaborator Mark Ronson, and Selena Gomez, who knew all the lyrics to “Pretty Please” like a true fan.

Lipa had a surprise for the NYC audience, bringing out Belgian singer Angéle to sing their slinky and seductive Future Nostalgia collab “Fever” for the first time together on stage.

Lipa also incorporated her Club Future Nostalgia remix album, turning MSG into an exhilarating post-quarantine nightclub, before asking the crowd to put up their phone lights for Elton John collab “Cold Heart” (Coincidentally, John also performed the song across town at Barclays Center that night).

Before the encore, Lipa fulfilled the promise of her smash hit “Levitating,” soaring above the crowd on a space-age platform before slaying the choreography back on Earth (aka the stage).

Lipa ended her set with a show-stopping solo rendition of “Future Nostalgia” — complete with Beyoncé-sized hair flips and dramatics — and her Grammy-nominated hit “Don’t Start Now,” transforming the Garden into a modern and rainbow-fied Studio 54 extravaganza.