Dua Lipa Denies Rumor She's Performing At World Cup, Cites Human Rights Concerns

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Dua Lipa Concert In Bogota
BOGOTA, COLOMBIA - SEPTEMBER 18: Singer Dua Lipa performs during her Future Nostalgia Tour at Parque Salitre Mágico on September 18, 2022 in Bogota, Colombia. (Photo by Guillermo Legaria/Getty Images)
Dua Lipa says that she'll be happy to visit Qatar after the country follows through on its human rights pledges.

Dua Lipa says that she's not performing at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. The pop star cleared up the confusion on her Instagram Story, Sunday, while citing human rights concerns regarding Qatar.

"There is currently a lot of speculation that I will be performing at the opening ceremony of the world cup in Qatar," she began.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JULY 10: Dua Lipa attends the 2019 Amazon Prime Day Concert on July 10, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)

She added: "I will not be performing and nor have I ever been involved in any negotiation to perform. I will be cheering England on from afar and I look forward to visiting Qatar when it has fulfilled all the human rights pledges it made when it won the right to host the World Cup.”

With a spotlight shining on Qatar due to the World Cup, the country's treatment of migrant workers and its anti-gay laws have drawn significant backlash. Being homosexual in the country is reportedly illegal and punishable by death.

Dua Lipa has been vocal in speaking out against human rights abuses at several points in her career. In 2021, she was criticized by many for her unwavering support of Palestinians. She also brought attention to security guards kicking fans out of a show for waving LGBTQ flags in Shanghai in 2018.

Lipa isn't the only artist to refuse to play in Qatar. Additionally, Rod Stewart announced that he rejected an offer to perform at the event.

“I turned it down. It’s not right to go," he told The Sunday Times. "And the Iranians should be out too for supplying arms.”

The World Cup opening ceremony is scheduled for November 20.

Check out Dua Lipa's statement on Instagram below.

Via Instagram @dualipa

[Via]

About The Author
Cole Blake is a current staff writer at HotNewHipHop based out of New York City. He began writing for the site as an intern back in 2018 while finishing his B.A. in Journalism at St. John’s University. In the time since, he’s covered a number of breaking stories for HNHH. These include the ongoing YSL RICO trial, the allegations surrounding Diddy, and much more. His work also extends outside of hip-hop, having written extensively about a myriad of topics including politics, sports, and pop culture. He’s attended several music festivals to provide coverage for the site as well, such as Rolling Loud and Governors Ball.
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