Dua Lipa collaborates with Coldplay's Chris Martin for a track on her debut album

Dua Lipa was in Singapore on May 8 to perform a five-track acoustic set at a private showcase at the JW Marriott Hotel Singapore South Beach. PHOTO: ALOYSIUS LIM/WARNER MUSIC SINGAPORE

British singer Dua Lipa not only got to collaborate with Coldplay frontman Chris Martin on her upcoming, self-titled album, but she also got a bit of life advice from him in the process.

The 21-year-old singer, who is behind hits such as Be The One and Blow Your Mind, revealed this to the local media when she was in town on Monday (May 8) to perform a five-track acoustic set at a private showcase at the JW Marriott Hotel Singapore South Beach.

Speaking to The Straits Times before the set, she admitted that working with Martin, who is her label mate at Warner Music, on the track Homesick was "really exciting but also really scary".

She said it was "surreal" to get to sit at the piano with him. "He's so distinctive in the way he works - the second he sits down and is playing piano, you're like, s*** that's Coldplay!

"I wanted to impress him, so I wrote lots of lyrics and was trying to compare our notes," she added.

Working with an experienced star like Martin was a coup for the singer, who started off doing YouTube covers only seven years ago at age 14.

"I told him about my experiences, travelling and stuff, and he shed light on something he's lived through for so long," she said.

"Sometimes I can get really overwhelmed and overwork myself, and he was like, 'You've also got to remember to stop and do things for yourself and be kind to yourself.'"

While she is in the nascent stage of her career and her debut album has yet to be released, Lipa is no stranger to high-profile collaborations.

The 12-track album due out on June 2, has already spawned hit singles such as Lost In Your Light, a duet with American R&B singer Miguel.

Remote video URL

Outside of her album, she has also worked on smash hit Scared To Be Lonely with electronic dance music's It-boy Martin Garrix.

Having gained fame from her YouTube covers of songs by her favourite artists such as Christina Aguilera and Nelly Furtado, which she said were a great way to get her foot in the door with studios and other artists, she is both nervous and excited about putting out a proper album after a two-year wait.

"I owe it to myself and my fans to be as honest as possible, and to be as much of an open book, so the songs I've chosen for this album are a lot aboutlove, and loss and heartbreak," she said, describing the tracks.

"As a debut album, it's really who I am as an artist and a person. I felt it was right to name it after myself, without it being weird."

anjalir@sph.com.sg

Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.