What Is The 'Dua Lipa Dance' Meme? Where It Comes From And Why She Got Bullied On Social Media For It

Dua Lipa has been dominating the pop music industry for a while now, with countless hits and viral songs playing all over the globe. The "Levitating" singer also became a viral meme in 2018 after a video of her twisting her hips repeatedly on the stage to the beat of her song "One Kiss" became the subject of online mockery.

Let's take a look back at the history behind the meme and how it became one of the inspirations for her latest album, "Future Nostalgia."

Where Does The Dua Lipa Dance Video Come From?

The clip of Dua Lipa twisting her hips alongside her dancers comes from a 2018 performance at the Lollapalooza Berlin festival. At the start of her song "One Kiss," the singer dances frantically, while looking a bit stiff in the actual dance moves. The video was live-streamed online and posted on YouTube shortly after (seen below), garnering 12,600 views and 127 likes in five years.

How Did The Dua Lipa Dance Video Become A Meme?

The singer's dance moves became a subject of online mockery a few months after the Lollapalooza Berlin performance. First, in December 2018, Twitter user @ungodlyanele posted the video of Dua Lipa dancing with the caption "What is this?"

i’m. wheezing. what is this? pic.twitter.com/2AJbn0gKkN

— a. 💌 (@ungodlyanele) December 8, 2018

People kept bullying and memeing the singer's dance moves over the next years. For example, Twitter user @WrittenByDavid posted a video of a person using a costume inspired by the singer's awkward dance moves.

SHE DID THE DUA LIPA ONE KISS DANCE SKSKSK I LOVE @lotionsideb pic.twitter.com/Y3W0rnuoS0

— David (@WrittenByDavid) February 19, 2019

Why Dua Lipa Quit Twitter After The Meme Went Viral?

Dua Lipa had no clue her "One Kiss" performance would evolve into a viral sensation. She revealed in an NPR interview in April 2022 that she stepped away from social media at the time the meme was going viral as a way to help her mental health in the wake of the influx of hate and jokes. The singer also explained she learned how to silence online haters while writing her second studio album, "Future Nostalgia," saying "I was able to shut people out. Now, if anybody says anything, it doesn't even bother me.

The meme reached a full circle on March 4th, 2022, when Dua Lipa recreated the dance on Jimmy Fallon's The Tonight Show. The video (seen below) was uploaded on the show's YouTube channel, receiving 3.4 million views and 44,000 likes in one year.

For the full history of the Dua Lipa Dance, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.