Studio 2054

Production of Studio 2054 began in August 2020, but planning for it started before then and took nearly five months to put together. Lipa wasn't originally on board with the livestream since she wanted to wait until she could perform in front of fans; however, her team put forward an idea to make it like a TV show and this changed her mind.[1][2] Lipa additionally thought her fans were longing for some sort of human connection during lockdown protocols associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.[3] The concert's name comes from the famous New York City nightclub, Studio 54; Lipa had always had a fascination with the nightclub and its varying personalities. With the concert, she wanted to have a modern take on the nightclub with several different artforms.[4] Lipa stated that she would be unable to do this on tour, and described it as a "live music video."[5] The show was crafted in four acts and filmed in London's Printworks venue, a large warehouse.[1][4] In the venue, custom-built sets were made that included "surreal tv shows, roller discos, ecstatic raves, trashy rocker hang outs, voguing ballrooms and diva style dressing rooms." Lipa also enlisted the help of musicians, dancers, skaters, aerialists, acrobats and surprise guests,[6] with whom she created a bubble with to avoid COVID-19. They rehearsed for the show in the weeks prior to it.[1] Lipa incorporated songs from her eponymous debut studio album (2017) and second album Future Nostalgia (2020), as well as the latter's companion remix album Club Future Nostalgia (2020), into the setlist.[7] Studio 2054 was part of American Express' Unstaged series and was broadcast through LIVENow.[8][9] In order to reach international viewers, deals were set up with demand-side platforms in areas where ticket sales didn't make sense. In India, Lipa's team set up a deal with Gaana to stream the show, while it was streamed in China via QQ Music, KuGou, Kuwo and WeSing, through Tencent.[1][2] German apparel company Puma sponsored the event; due to this, all cast members wore Puma-branded outfits.[10][11] Évian also sponsored the concert.[12] Overall, the show cost $1.5 million to produce.[13]

On 23 October 2020, Lipa postponed her fifth headlining concert tour, the Future Nostalgia Tour, for the second time, from January 2021 to September 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[14] With the announcement, she also unveiled that she had some "fun" items to be revealed in the meantime.[15] Three days later, Lipa revealed while announcing two 2020 American Music Awards nominees on Good Morning America that she had an exciting announcement coming on 28 October 2020.[16] Later on the day of her initial announcement, Lipa posted a link to her website on Twitter.[17] The website showed a title of "Studio 2054", and a countdown to 19:00 GMT on 28 October 2020 when an announcement would be made.[18] Promotion for "Studio 2054" began appearing across London.[19] The show was formally announced through a press release and Lipa's website;[20] Lipa further promoted the livestream with an Instagram Live following the announcement. English singer Elton John joined her to talk about his experiences in Studio 54.[21] Several trailers were released in the lead up to the live show.[1] Belgian singer Angèle,[22] English singer FKA Twigs,[23][24] American singer Miley Cyrus,[25] Colombian singer J Balvin, Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny, Puerto Rican record producer Tainy,[26] Australian singer Kylie Minogue,[27][28][29] John, American DJ The Blessed Madonna,[30][31][32] and British DJ Buck Betty were announced as special guests following the livestream's announcement.[33] Due to the pandemic, guests joined Lipa both in person and virtually.[4]

Studio 2054 featured several guest appearances from artists including (left to right in order of appearance) FKA Twigs, The Blessed Madonna, Miley Cyrus, Bad Bunny, J Balvin, Tainy, Angèle, Kylie Minogue and Elton John.

VIP-ticket holders got to experience exclusive behind the scenes footage from Studio 2054's rehearsals.[20] The show was preceded by a few adverts for Yves Saint Laurent, Jaguar, and Morrisons, all featuring Lipa.[34][35] It ran for 70 minutes.[4][36] Studio 2054 was filmed with a 1980s-styled camera lens,[37] and opened in a 1980s television show set for the first act,[38] similar to that of British music chart show Top of the Pops (1964 – present).[34] The set featured neon lights, geometric structures hanging from the ceiling, dry ice, and a 1970s-styled dance floor.[34][39][40] The performance began with flashing lights and dancers cheering as Lipa made her way to an elevated platform to perform "Future Nostalgia"; as the enthusiastic dancers cheered around her,[34] she confidently performed while flexing her biceps.[34][41][42] She wore a custom, sequined The Attico bodysuit with long tassels.[43] Lipa descends the podium and goes straight into a retro-disco choreographed rendition of "Levitating",[44] which included a dance break in the middle with a bona fide guitar solo and the singer interacting with her live band.[39][41] The singer continued into a slower number, "Pretty Please",[41] before transitioning into an extended intro of "Break My Heart" that interpolated Donna Summer's "I Feel Love" (1977).[44]

The second act saw Lipa changing outfits into a silver, custom-made Alexander Wang leotard and black boots,[43][44] and beginning a performance of "Break My Heart".[41] In the performance, she strutted through giant neon hula hoops while dancers ran with her.[45][46][47] FKA Twigs then joined the show to premiere her and Lipa's unreleased track, "Why Don't You Love Me",[45] wearing a black Nasir Mazhar butt-bearing bikini with knee-high boots.[35][48] Twigs appeared on a darkened stage that was illuminated by a spotlight where she performed a pole dance solo, before Lipa joined her to end the performance with an embrace.[39][40][42][48] Lipa then made her way to a roller disco set where she momentarily picked up a drink from the bar before waving to The Blessed Madonna, who appeared in the center DJ Booth. Lipa made her way to the booth to hug The Blessed Madonna, and ask her to play "Physical".[34][40][49] The rendition of the song contained extra disco style,[47] and Lipa performed sweaty aerobics choreography with dancers dressed in neon primary-coloured workout gear.[44][49] At one point in the performance, the singer dropped to her knees while singing passionately.[41] Following the performance, The Blessed Madonna performed a Club Future Nostalgia DJ mix that included a salsa remake of "Boys Will Be Boys" based on Zach Witness' remix, Gwen Stefani's "Hollaback Girl" (2005), and "Cosmic Girl" (1996) by Jamiroquai.[42][44][47][50] During the mix, Lipa joined The Blessed Madonna once again in the DJ booth.[39] Lipa performed "Cool" while standing in the middle of the set next.[44] Roller skaters surrounded her and the mirrorball panned around the set.[49][50] The end of "Cool" featured a phone ringing sound effect as an intro to "New Rules".[41][44] Lipa and her dancers made their way to an abandoned warehouse space for the song's performance.[40] During the performance, Lipa picked up a phone and slammed it down as well as performing "crab-like" choreography with her dancers.[44][45]

The third act began with Lipa walking into a bordello-themed, pink and gold boudoir where her brother Gjin is playing FIFA 21 (2020) with Kalvin Phillips, Bukayo Saka, Jeremy Lynch and AJ Tracey.[40][45] Lipa changed the channel on the TV to a VHS format of unreleased footage for "Prisoner" with Cyrus.[39][46][48] Lipa continued with a performance of "Un Dia (One Day)" as J Balvin, Bad Bunny, and Tainy appeared on the vintage TV set in the corner to contribute their respective parts.[41][44][48] She wore a new outfit: a Versace rhinestone-studded bustier top alongside black jeans and sneakers.[43][48] Angèle then joined Lipa in a matching outfit to perform "Fever", during which the two danced around the set.[48] The show moved into a New York City boiler room rave where Buck Betty performed as the DJ.[38][51] She proceeded by performing "One Kiss" from behind the DJ deck as dancers were seen on the dance floor.[47][49] Minogue then made her way towards the DJ deck to duet with Lipa on her song "Real Groove" from her fifteenth studio album Disco (2020).[48] Minogue jumped onto the DJ deck during the performance and she stayed to also duet with Lipa on "Electricity".[35][37]

For the final act, John opened with a pre-recorded solo performance of his song "Rocket Man" that was projected on a wall, with dancers watching motionlessly, similar to an In Memoriam service.[37][39][40] However, he was cut off during the first chorus as the camera panned to another space in the warehouse and Lipa performed "Hallucinate".[40][42] The set was sci-fi themed with a moon included in the background and Lipa wore a skin-tight jumpsuit with a crystal-embellished design.[40][52] Studio 2054 closed with a performance of "Don't Start Now", which contained elements of "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)" (1979) by ABBA.[45] The performance featured flashing neon lights paired with strict and doubly choreography.[39][47] Lipa then went through all the sets featured in the show, before a huge glitter canon was set off as she screamed, "Yeah!"[37][39] The cameras then panned out to reveal the whole set.[40] VIP-ticket guests also got to attend a 20-minute after party with The Blessed Madonna following the show. Viewers got a fly on the wall view as the DJ played old-school disco classics including "Keep On Jumpin'" (1978) by Musique.[49]

Critics had mixed opinions about English singer Elton John's (pictured) Studio 2054 performance.

Studio 2054 was met with generally positive reviews from critics.[53] In a positive review for The Daily Telegraph, Neil McCormick gave the show five stars and viewed it as "the best livestream" of 2020. Specifically, he commended the show for being "exceptionally well-staged" and "an escapist fantasy from the sofa," as well as complimenting Minogue's performance and criticizing John's.[40] Writing for The Times, Dan Cairns praised the "slick, polished" production values and thought that the show re-birthed Studio 54, excluding the drugs and "dodgy accounting." He went on to criticize it for looking like a "nightclub scene in a sleazy 1980s movie" and like having 1980s MTV on loop, as well as for the "mayhem [failing] to materialise."[35] The Observer writer Kitty Empire agreed with McCormick in terms of Minogue and John's performance and noted the nod to disco, the 1980s, Europop, and club culture. Giving the show four stars out of five, she praised the "executes tunes, choreography and [flawless] costume changes" and how it is a "retro-futurist dance-party."[45] The show was listed as one of the 29 best fashion moments of 2020 by Vogue's Emily Farra.[54]

Studio 2054 was given three stars by The Guardian's Alexis Petridis, who commended Lipa's "spangly outfits" and her vocals that "never [miss] a note or [sound] breathless." On the other hand, he disapproved of the many guest appearances that he thought were a "damp squib," but also viewed the show as "weirdly fun" despite the shortcomings.[34] NME's Rhian Daly awarded the show four stars; he thought that it completed Lipa's "evolution from good to great," as well as praising her performance and stage presence. He additionally called the show "an aesthetic wonderland of neon and glitter" but also disapproved of John's appearance.[42] Chris Willman of Variety named the show a "happy dispatch from another galaxy, where dancing and dopamine both still occur, and joy is a thing of the present," and complimented it for being FX-free. He additionally praised Lipa's performance and criticized the guest performers.[39] Allison Hussey from Pitchfork viewed the show as a "star-studded event."[50] Both Amy Mackelden of Harper's Bazaar and V's Luana Harumi highlighted the guest stars' performances and Lipa's costumes.[48][51]

In a positive review from DIY, Elly Watson thought Studio 2054 set the bar for live streams and described it as "all glitz, all glamour, all bangers, and all high production, with multiple fabulous costume changes, new sets, and choreographed dance moves."[37] Narzra Ahmed of Clash highly praised Lipa's performance and vocals, and the guest appearances, as well as the "spectacular" concert as a whole.[41] Alim Kheraj of i gave the show three stars and directing praise towards Lipa performance alongside her live vocals; however, he criticized the "New Rules" performance and the guest performers who didn't perform in person, specifically John.[44] In a mixed review for The Arts Desk, Joe Muggs gave the show three stars and had mixed feelings on the sets, Lipa's performance, the setlist and the guest appearances. However, he called the show "anything but a disappointment."[47] For Billboard, Katie Atkinson and Keith Caulfield praised the high production values but also criticized the guest performers. They concluded by expressing their perforation for a live concert but thought it would sound nice as a live album with the seamless transitions between songs.[55]

Tickets for Studio 2054 went on sale worldwide at 08:00 BST on 30 October 2020 for £8.99, while VIP tickets were priced at £15.00.[20] They went on sale earlier and at better prices for people who signed up on Lipa's website.[18] Ticket prices increased on 3 and 16 November 2020, respectively.[56][57][58] On 9 November 2020, tickets for Hungary, Czech Republic, Greece, Croatia, Slovenia, Kosovo, Albania, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovakia and Bulgaria went on sale.[59] Studio 2054 brought in an estimated 5 million viewers, setting a record for attendance of a paid livestream.[60][61] The number included 1.9 million unique log-ins from China, 95,000 from India and 284,000 ticket sales worldwide.[2][62] Lipa's team estimated that the actual viewership was closer to 8 or 9 million, as they presumed more than one person watched the show per ticket sold.[63][64] The number also increased due to the show being available to watch until 6 December 2020, priced at £7.50.[65] At its peak viewership, Studio 2054 had viewers in 150 countries.[1] However, Lipa's team admitted that the stream underperformed in some territories. Following the concert, ticket sales for the Future Nostalgia Tour went up by 70%. The official revenue numbers for the show were not published, but Lipa's team stated it was a "profitable venture" and that she will probably do another livestream in the future regardless due to this.[2]

Adapted from Pitchfork,[50] with additional information added from Billboard,[55] i[44] and NME.[42]

Credits adapted from the closing credits of Studio 2054.[67]

• Dua Lipa – lead performer

Performers

Costuming

Crew

• Trailer on YouTube
• Studio 2054 official announcement on Dua Lipa's website