Pop princess Dua Lipa is known for her striking videos — “New Rules” was such a pop culture phenomenon in part because of its iconic video. Lipa is back with her first new track of 2019, the confident, anthemic banger “Swan Song,” written for the soundtrack for the upcoming Robert Rodriguez-directed film Alita: Battle Angel. The visuals for “Swan Song” do not disappoint.
The visuals, helmed by prolific music video director Floria Sigismondi, follow the loose plot of Alita: Battle Angel. In the movie, a young cyborg wakes up in a post-apocalyptic city overrun by technological garbage, and subsequently discovers her power in the new world. Lipa’s video takes place in the same visual universe, a landscape of trash and debris. Partway through the video, Lipa looks in the mirror and sees a short-haired avatar. It’s Alita from the movie, but to those unfamiliar, it just looks like a pretty good cartoon version of Dua Lipa. (They have the same haircut.) Lipa discovers she now has cyborg arms, and looks over her garbage city knowing she is powerful and can protect it. The cinematic video is a perfect match for the powerful song, and Lipa is great natural actress. If she ever decides to pause her pop career, she makes a very believable cyborg queen.
Check out the video for Dua Lipa’s new song “Swan Song” above.
