Dua Lipa Recruits Madonna, Missy Elliott for Flirty, Sped-Up ‘Levitating’ Remix

Dua Lipa’s “Levitating” gets a clubbier update with the help of legends Madonna and Missy Elliott. The song will appear on the upcoming remix LP Club Future Nostalgia, which the Grammy winner worked on with DJ and producer the Blessed Madonna (formerly known as the Black Madonna).

The “Levitating” remix turns the song into a fast-paced romp with Lipa and Madonna trading verses and harmonizing together on the tongue-twistingly sped-up track. The beat is no match for Elliott, who offers a flirty, freaky new verse of her own. 

“Madonna has been an artist that I’ve listened to my whole life,” Lipa told Zane Lowe in an interview for Apple Music. “Her career trajectory as well has been something so inspirational and the momentum that she’s kept and the way that she’s grown with her music.”

The pop star added that Missy Elliott was immediately on board for the remix and “inspired” by the track. “I jumped on the phone with her and we had a little talk and she really just does stuff that she really believes in, so that I felt it was such a massive compliment for me, for her to be so inspired by the remix and the track, and to want to be a part of it and be a part of this mixtape.”

Lipa announced the album earlier this month, noting that Madonna and Missy Elliott weren’t the only special guests. Gwen Stefani has been confirmed for a Mark Ronson-remixed version of “Physical.” Other artists and producers are as-yet-unconfirmed. 

Lipa’s sophomore album Future Nostalgia was released in March. It was one of the first big albums to drop while the Covid-19 pandemic began to ramp up around the world, forcing many to begin sheltering in place. In an interview on the Rolling Stone Music Now podcast, the singer addressed the difficult decision she faced in releasing the album at that time.

“I guess that was kind of the thing I was maybe the most conflicted about,” she said. “It’s such an upbeat, high-tempo album that you would just want to dance to. I wasn’t sure if it was really the time to put it out — to celebrate, I guess, during a time of so much suffering.”

Recently, the album was shortlisted for the 2020 Mercury Prize, a prestigious award honoring the year’s best album by a British artist.