Adele backs Dua Lipa as “the next big pop girl”

The singer also spoke of being intimidated by Lady Gaga

Adele and Dua Lipa. CREDITS: Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images for Adele, Araya Doheny/FilmMagic

Adele has expressed her support for Dua Lipa as “the next big pop girl” in a new interview.

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter in commemoration of being awarded their Sherry Lansing Leadership Award, Adele spoke extensively about her experiences being a woman in entertainment, her storied career, her current life living in Los Angeles and her ambitions for the future.

In the latter part of the interview, when asked about her “favourite records of the year”, the 35-year-old named SZA’s ‘SOS’ as “definitely [her] favourite”, and conveyed her love for Victoria Monét.

In addition, she expressed her excitement for Dua Lipa’s return. “I’m also very excited that Dua Lipa is back,” she said. “When I first ever heard — (starts singing) ‘I’ve got new rules, I count ’em’ — that song, I remember saying to my manager, ‘Whoa.’ I was like, ‘She should be the next big pop girl.’ And she is. I’m so excited she’s back.”

When informed that the top three categories of the 2024 Grammy Awards were dominated by women, she exclaimed: “The big top three awards? All women? Wow. That’s insane. That’s incredible. Fucking phenomenal.”

Adele poses with the Best Pop Solo Performance Award for “Easy on Me” in the press room during the 65th GRAMMY Awards at Crypto.com Arena on February 05, 2023. CREDIT: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images

Elsewhere in the interview, she touched on her Las Vegas residency, Weekends With Adele, which has recently been extended to run until June 2024. She spoke about the emotional encounter she had with the doctor who birthed her son at one of its dates. “I had no idea he was there. His daughter was next to him, and she had a sign. And you’re not supposed to bring signs in, and people keep sneaking them in,” she said.

“So as I was walking around past the booths, I saw this girl, and I just looked at the sign, and nodded. And then I saw the name of who was her dad. And then I looked next to her and he was there. Oh, yeah, I cried for a week after this.”

She also admitted that the most intimidating guest she spotted at a Weekends With Adele date was Lady Gaga, saying that she “shat [herself] the whole show”. “I was like, ‘The show’s terrible. It’s rubbish. I’m singing terribly. I’m not funny. My dress is rubbish this week’,” she recounted. “I was judging myself. And she’s not like that. But she made me really, really nervous.”

Most recently, the ‘Rolling In The Deep’ star launched a new beauty business named ‘The Shelbourne Collective’. In early October, she admitted in a Weekends With Adele date that she had been a “borderline alcoholic” since her 20s, and had been sober for three months. She has also been proposed to, spoke about how security guards have had to remove some “fucking raccous” audience members, and jokingly warned an audience that she would “fucking kill” anyone who threw items at the stage during her performance.