Dua Lipa‘s Radical Optimism tour is taking over down under. During her second night in Sydney, Australia, the singer surprised her audience with a cover of Tame Impala‘s “The Less I Know the Better” with an assist from Kevin Parker himself.
“I made most of Radical Optimism with this person and he’s one of my favorite artists,” Lipa said while introducing Parker. “He’s inspired me a lot. I manifested and dreamt about working with him one day and then I managed to make one of my favorite albums with him. So many of those memories making this record are just so special. And so tonight I feel very lucky that I get to sing one of my favorite songs ever with one of my favorite artists. Give it up for Kevin Parker.”
Throughout the Australian leg of her Radical Optimism tour, Lipa has covered songs from local legends including Troye Sivan, INXS, Kylie Minogue, Vance Joy, and AC/DC. Sivan and Joy even joined her onstage for performances of “Rush” and “Riptide,” respectively.
@khanhong @Dua Lipa surprise guest in Sydney #dualipa #kevinparker
Lipa and Parker first began working together in July 2022. Parker, she told Rolling Stone last year, “was quite shy in the beginning.” Soon enough, their collaborative partnership warmed up. “Her editing is brutal,” Parker said at the time. One song they worked on together, the single “Houdini,” took months to nail down. “I’d kind of recoil in horror and go, ‘Oh, no, it’s a great verse!’” Parker added. “But then an hour later, we’d have something that I can’t imagine not being in the song.”
At Glastonbury 2024, Parker appeared with Lipa to perform both “Houdini” and “The Less I Know the Better.” The latest Tame Impala album The Slow Rush arrived in February 2020. Since then, Parker has largely busied himself in the studio with other artists including Thundercat on the one-off single “No More Lies” and Gorillaz on “New Gold.”
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From Rolling Stone US