In October, Dua Lipa gave a spectacular one-night live performance at the historic Royal Album Hall in London. It was a stylish crowning achievement for her hometown for the singer, who grew up in the city and has become one of Britain’s biggest pop artists over the last decade. She pulled out all the stops for the event. As she took the stage in a red, floor-length Jean Paul Gaultier dress, a 53-piece orchestra and a 14-piece choir accompanied the singer, along with her tight, disco-tinged backing band. “There were so many remarkable people on that stage, like Winston Churchill, Charles De Gaulle and Einstein,” she told the crowd. “But I’m almost 99% sure they didn’t have a dress as beautiful as this one.”

Now this show is celebrated for posterity with the 20-track live album. Dua Lipa Live from the Royal Albert Hallwhich appears ahead of a concert special of the same name airing December 15 on CBS. The concert was a showcase for their 2024 album Radical optimismwhich she performed completely from front to back. Radical optimism wasn’t a huge commercial success and many reviews deemed it a somewhat tepid half-measure after the breakout success of their retro milestone released during the pandemic Future nostalgia. But the tracks shine here, rendered with seamless transitions, giving the whole thing a regal Donna Summer/Diana Ross grandeur. The adoring audience doesn’t even seem to mind that she didn’t make career-defining hits like “New Rules” and “IDGAF.”

After playing through her latest work, the singer continues Future nostalgia the tracks “Love Again”, “Pretty Please” and “Levitating” as well as a version of “Sunshine” by singer Cleo Soul. Royal Albert HalI also show killer versions of the Barbie hit “Dance the Night” and an elegant walk through their biggest hit “Don’t Start Now” that had the crowd joining in on every word.

One of the highlights of the evening is the beginning of the encore. As the orchestra plays a Broadway interlude, Lipa begins singing the introduction to Elton John’s “Rocket Man,” then brings out “a man who needs no introduction, Elton John!” The duo then launch into a stunning version of “Cold Heart (Pnau Remix),” their dance-pop collaboration from John’s 2021 collection The Lockdown sessions. In addition to the interpolation of “Rocket Man”, the song also contains parts of Elton’s 1989 hit “Sacrifice” and 1976’s “Where’s the Shoorah?” and 1983’s “Kiss the Bride”.

“Cold Heart,” produced by Australian electronic trio Pnau, reached the top of the charts worldwide and became the most streamed song in Elton’s illustrious discography. “Having the opportunity to spend time with Dua, albeit from a distance, was incredible,” John said upon releasing the song. “She gave me so much energy. She is a truly wonderful artist and person who is bursting with creativity and ideas.”

It was a particularly poignant moment, for reasons that may not have been entirely clear to everyone present that evening. Just over a month before he took the stage at the Royal Albert Hall, the pop icon revealed he had suffered a “severe” eye infection over the summer which resulted in reduced vision in one eye. At the New York premiere of his documentary Elton John: Never too late“There’s not much left of me,” he joked, adding: “In fact, all I have left is my left hip.” Most recently, during the premiere of the West End debut of The devil wears Prada In the musical on December 1st, Elton revealed that he has now completely lost his vision.

That makes his appearance with Dua in October – as well as the live album and TV special – all the more meaningful. Elton sang that evening sitting in a chair, but his voice was not muffled in the slightest as he belted out “Cold Heart,” itself a tribute to the enduring legacy and influence of his music, as well as his eternal importance as a musical guide for new artists. It was the second time they had performed the song live together, and as it was likely planned as the extent and severity of his health condition was still developing, the strength and warmth expressed in his performance is truly inspiring. At a time when the whole world is after him, he makes a special evening even greater.