Pop singer Dua Lipa granted Albanian citizenship

Pop princess Dua Lipa has been granted Albanian citizenship.

The ‘Don’t Start Now’ singer received the honour on Sunday 27 November at a ceremony with the nation’s president Bajram Begaj.

The artist is of Albanian origin and the move comes ahead of Albania’s 110th anniversary of independence from the Ottoman empire.

The move also comes at a time when the UK government has come under fire for demonising Albanian immigrants to the country.

Is Dua Lipa Albanian?

Born to immigrant Albanian parents from Kosovo in London, Dua Lipa (her real name), 27, is a Grammy award winning musician.

Lipa co-founded the Sunny Hill Foundation in 2016 with her father to aid annual concerts held in her native Kosovo, to help people experiencing financial difficulties.

In 2020, Lipa courted controversy after posting a map of so-called ‘Greater Albania’ which incorporated Kosovo and other Balkan countries into Albania, uniting all ethnic Albanians in one nation. The star posted the map in response to a petition for Apple maps to feature Kosovo as an independent nation; the country’s status is not universally recognised and is most prominently denied by Serbia and Russia.

On one occasion in 2014 this particular map caused a football match between Serbia and Albania to descend into violence when a drone unfurled it above the pitch.

Lipa was accused of being in favour of Albanian expansionism; however, she later clarified she was against “ethnic separatism”.

“We all deserve to be proud of our ethnicity and where we are from,” Lipa said at the time.

“I simply want my country to be represented on a map and to be able to speak with pride and joy about my Albanian roots.”

Likewise, fellow pop singer Rita Ora, also form Kosovo, has spoken out for more recognition for the country.