Dua Lipa is continuing her streak of teaming up with iconic artists on her Radical Optimism World Tour.
On Saturday night (Sept. 20), the 30-year-old British-Albanian pop star delivered the third show of her four-night run at New York’s Madison Square Garden, where she surprised fans by bringing out legendary musician Nile Rodgers for an electrifying performance of Chic’s 1978 disco classic “Le Freak.” Watch it here.
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Lipa has become known for performing a locally inspired cover at stops on her Radical Optimism Tour, which launched its U.S. leg at Chicago’s United Center earlier this month.
During her previous MSG shows earlier in the week, the “Dance the Night” singer paid tribute to the city with covers of New York staples, including Alicia Keys’ “No One” and Blondie’s “One Way or Another.”
“Here in New York, I’m actually spoiled with the choice,” Lipa told the crowd before her Blondie cover.
Check out Billboard’s recap of the five best moments from her second night at MSG here.
At the tour’s U.S. kickoff in Chicago on Sept. 5, Lipa brought out hometown legend Chaka Khan to perform a powerful rendition of the 1983 hit “Ain’t Nobody.”
The tradition of regional covers began earlier in the year during her stops in Australia and New Zealand, where she performed songs by artists such as AC/DC, Lorde and Kylie Minogue. She also welcomed special guests including Troye Sivan, Tame Impala and Crowded House’s Neil Finn.
While the trend continued less frequently during the European leg, she performed Enrique Iglesias’ “Hero” in Madrid. In London, she brought out Jamiroquai’s Jay Kay for “Virtual Insanity” at Wembley Stadium, followed the next night by a guest appearance from Charli XCX for her Brat hit “360.”
Other notable tributes included The Zutons’ “Valerie” (made popular by Amy Winehouse) with the group’s frontman Dave McCabe in Liverpool, The Beatles’ “Hey Jude” in the Fab Four’s hometown, and a heartfelt performance of “Nothing Compares 2 U” in Dublin in honor of late Irish singer Sinéad O’Connor.
Lipa is set to wrap up her four-night MSG stint on Sunday (Sept. 21) before continuing the North American leg with stops in Miami, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle, followed by a run of dates through South America and Mexico.
After a brief break in August following two months of shows across Europe, Lipa resumed touring in North America with back-to-back shows in Toronto on Sept. 1–2.
The Radical Optimism World Tour is in support of Lipa’s third studio album, Radical Optimism, which debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 in 2024. The album produced several hits, including lead single “Houdini,” which spent 17 weeks at No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart.
