Dua Lipa says female music stars ‘just want an equal space in the industry’

Dua Lipa said she hopes equality for female stars in the music industry “will level out”.

The British-Albanian singer and actress appeared on the red carpet ahead of the 66th Grammy awards ceremony, where she is nominated for song of the year for her track Dance The Night from the Barbie album.

Among the stars walking the red carpet was British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran, who flew in from Taiwan, and US star Sofia Richie debuting her growing baby bump.

Speaking about female musicians dominating the Grammy nominations, Dua Lipa told the AP news agency on the red carpet: “I think it is just wonderful to see so many women at the top.”

“What we want is just an equal space in the industry and to be seen equally and at equal levels, not just the creative side, but on the business side.

“So hopefully equality in the industry will level out. I think we’re still kind of figuring that part out but were getting there slowly, baby steps.”

Her comments come after a report from the UK government’s Women and Equalities Committee warned that misogyny and discrimination is “endemic” in the music industry.

The 28-year-old, who appeared on the red carpet with her father Dukagjin Lipa and will perform during the ceremony, said she was wearing a custom Courreges dress paired with jewellery that made her feel “strong and powerful”.

She also revealed she never listens to her own music after releasing it.

She said: “When I put my music out, I never listen to it ever again unless I’m prepping for my tour or prepping for a music video, I will watch it up until it comes out and then when it comes out I never watch it ever again.

“(Once) it goes out into the world I never listen to it, so if I hear it on the radio or I hear it when someone is driving past, I get so excited because I’m seeing it and hearing it in the real world so it feels special.”

Meanwhile Billie Eilish, who is up for six awards including song of the year and record of the year for What Was I Made For? from blockbuster Barbie, confirmed she is set to release a new album later this year.

The US singer, who wore a black bomber jacket with an embroidered Barbie badge, told AP on the red carpet: “Yes, there will be a new album. We’re getting there, soon I will have more to say. But for now, Barbie is what we’re talking about.”

The 22-year-old US singer, alongside her songwriting brother Finneas O’Connell, has already picked up best song written for visual media for the ballad.

Reflecting on the win, she said: “It’s so insane. When we were sitting there in this little studio in January last year writing this song, we weren’t thinking about this. This wasn’t part of it. We never would have thought it would bring us here.

“I am so honoured to be spoken about in regard to Barbie, Grammy’s, Oscars…whatever happens, I am happy.”

Meanwhile British record producer Mark Ronson, who co-produced the Barbie album, said he would have loved to have seen everyone from the film nominated at the Academy Awards after Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie were snubbed in major categories.

“I think Greta just did such an incredible job, she created a world that didn’t exist before,” he told AP.

The 48-year-old, who said he was once a seat filler at the Grammy award, also spoke about the rise of artificial intelligence in the music industry.

“I might be naive but I don’t think there will ever be a technology that makes us feel the same thing we hear when we hear a Stevie Wonder and Amy Winehouse vocal for the first time, I just hope the thing that we love about humans and performance never goes away.”

While US singer Billy Joel, who is set to return to the stage to perform, said he feels the Grammy’s may still be “mad” with him after the last time he performed at the awards show around 20 years ago.

Speaking to AP on the red carpet, he recalled: “I did it 20 years ago, and they got mad at me. Frank Sinatra was at those Grammys and he did a speech and it went on a little too long so they played him off the stage.

“So all the musicians got really bugged about this and so I did my song, and in the middle of my song I just stopped and I looked at my watch and I said ‘There is a lot of valuable advertising time going by here’ and I stopped for a long time and then I went back on.

“So they might still be mad at me for that.”