Dua Lipa - "Illusion"

[jdanton2]

Apr 12, 2024 12:33:54 GMT -5 Juan Carlos said:

FRIDAY 4/12 UPDATE:

POP:
— 47 DUA LIPA Illusion 156 0 156 0.499

HOT AC:
— 50 DUA LIPA Illusion 53 0 53 0.149

Top 50.

that is from 5 or 6 hours? Dua was able to debut in the top 50 before with a similar release schedule . for me Houdini is one of my favorite songs this year. both followups are ok but don't come close.

[Juan Carlos]

Apr 12, 2024 15:24:59 GMT -5 jdanton2 said:

that is from 5 or 6 hours?

It depends. The track was released at 3pm. PDT / 5pm. CDT / 6pm. EDT, so it was 9 hours in the west coast, 7 hours in the central area and 6 hours in the east coast.

Apr 12, 2024 15:24:59 GMT -5 jdanton2 said:

Dua was able to debut in the top 50 before with a similar release schedule.

That's correct and it was with "Houdini" during this era. Although "Training Season" had the similar release schedule as "Houdini" and "Illusion", it made the Top 50 two days later (Saturday) instead of the next day (Friday).

[Jose Polica]

[jdanton2]

Apr 12, 2024 15:46:06 GMT -5 Juan Carlos said:

Apr 12, 2024 15:24:59 GMT -5 jdanton2 said:

that is from 5 or 6 hours?

It depends. The track was released at 3pm. PDT / 5pm. CDT / 6pm. EDT, so it was 9 hours in the west coast, 7 hours in the central area and 6 hours in the east coast.

Apr 12, 2024 15:24:59 GMT -5 jdanton2 said:

Dua was able to debut in the top 50 before with a similar release schedule.

That's correct and it was with "Houdini" during this era. Although "Training Season" had the similar release schedule as "Houdini" and "Illusion", it made the Top 50 two days later (Saturday) instead of the next day (Friday).

thanks!i always thought it was 12am EDT time for everyone .

[wjr15]

#1 on TTH on Spotify

Should help give this a decent debut.

[kimberly]

my initial reaction is that this is the most BASIC of the three singles.

that said, it's still an undeniable earworm and a bop. idk y'all, this era is shaping up to be my favorite from Dua. definitely her most ambitious and challenging music.

[kcdawg13]

Unpopular opinion, Houdini is the best of the 3 tracks she's released so far

[Deleted]

Apr 12, 2024 18:05:51 GMT -5 kimberly said:

my initial reaction is that this is the most BASIC of the three singles.

that said, it's still an undeniable earworm and a bop. idk y'all, this era is shaping up to be my favorite from Dua. definitely her most ambitious and challenging music.

Idk, I personally feel like Houdini is one of the most basic songs she’s ever recorded (Boys Will Be Boys not withstanding) so it’s interesting to me to see that tossed at this.

[balletgirlmom]

Dua is a great artist and Illusion will do fine!

[Dylan :)]

Apr 12, 2024 18:02:43 GMT -5 wjr15 said:

#1 on TTH on Spotify

Should help give this a decent debut.

#11 Global Spotify
#11 UK Spotify
#14 Irish Spotify
#31 US Spotify

[Az Paynter]

POP:
-- 38 DUA LIPA Illusion 656 0 656 2.171

+500 Spins
+500 Bullet
+1.672 Audience

HOT AC:
-- 42 DUA LIPA Illusion 102 0 102 0.282

+49 Spins
+49 Bullet
+0.133 Audience

[Mirago]

I like it, a funky dancefloor anthem, the kind you like more when you're on vacation. Anyone hear Get Together or Music Sounds Better With You in that bassline?
I agree that the human pyramid reminds me of Kylie's All The Lovers video, if I recall Nelly Furtado climbs a wall of humans too in Força.
Only thing I'd critique about the video is that I'd have comped some fun clouds into the couple drab cloudless shots. 

[avamaxstan]

Apr 12, 2024 18:14:59 GMT -5 kcdawg13 said:

Unpopular opinion, Houdini is the best of the 3 tracks she's released so far

I don’t think that’s an unpopular opinion. Houdini > illusion > TD

[Deleted]

I’m finding this very addictive sonically. I do wish the lyrics were stronger though, still having a hard time remembering them even though the song itself is in my head.

[kimberly]

Apr 12, 2024 22:10:52 GMT -5 @pikandru said:

Apr 12, 2024 18:05:51 GMT -5 kimberly said:

my initial reaction is that this is the most BASIC of the three singles.

that said, it's still an undeniable earworm and a bop. idk y'all, this era is shaping up to be my favorite from Dua. definitely her most ambitious and challenging music.

Idk, I personally feel like Houdini is one of the most basic songs she’s ever recorded (Boys Will Be Boys not withstanding) so it’s interesting to me to see that tossed at this.

to me, "catch me or I go Houdini" and "training season's over" are a bit more unique concepts than

Ooh, what you doin'?
Don't know who you think that you're confusin'
I be like, ooh, it's amusin'

which, as a hook, sounds like something a 3rd grader could come up with. I like the production and verses enough so I can overlook this, but it's really underbaked.

[Deleted]

Apr 13, 2024 12:56:56 GMT -5 kimberly said:

Apr 12, 2024 22:10:52 GMT -5 @pikandru said:

Idk, I personally feel like Houdini is one of the most basic songs she’s ever recorded (Boys Will Be Boys not withstanding) so it’s interesting to me to see that tossed at this.

to me, "catch me or I go Houdini" and "training season's over" are a bit more unique concepts than

Ooh, what you doin'?
Don't know who you think that you're confusin'
I be like, ooh, it's amusin'

which, as a hook, sounds like something a 3rd grader could come up with. I like the production and verses enough so I can overlook this, but it's really underbaked.

Yeah, I can agree lyrically. I tend to look at songs from much more of a sonic standpoint though, especially pop music.

[Fears in the Fire]

I really don’t like to say this but all three singles sound almost the same. To the point where if one was playing on the radio it would take me a bit to figure out which one it was.

They all had potential to be memorable but were bogged down by the clear formulaic production. There is little sonic difference between the verses and choruses in any of the songs, making them monotonous and drag on.

For me: training season>houdini>illusion

[eyeofthestorm]

Only Legends garner such harsh criticisms.

[312999]

Apr 12, 2024 18:14:59 GMT -5 kcdawg13 said:

Unpopular opinion, Houdini is the best of the 3 tracks she's released so far

This should be the popular opinion. What is an even more unpopular opinion is what I am about to say right now. Houdini is Dua Lipas best song ever.

[Az Paynter]

POP:
-- 33 DUA LIPA Illusion 947 0 947 2.930

+291 Spins
+291 Bullet
+0.759 Audience

HOT AC:
-- 41 DUA LIPA Illusion 149 0 149 0.299

+47 Spins
+47 Bullet
+0.017 Audience

[GrinningLikeADevil]

I do like this a lot, but completely agree with the criticism of the lyrics. I like all three songs released so far, but Houdini is still easily my favourite.

[stormlover74]

Apr 12, 2024 22:42:56 GMT -5 balletgirlmom said:

Dua is a great artist and Illusion will do fine!

It might crack the top 40 when she hosts snl in 3 weeks

[Deleted]

Apr 14, 2024 1:50:33 GMT -5 312999 said:

Apr 12, 2024 18:14:59 GMT -5 kcdawg13 said:

Unpopular opinion, Houdini is the best of the 3 tracks she's released so far

This should be the popular opinion. What is an even more unpopular opinion is what I am about to say right now. Houdini is Dua Lipas best song ever.

Whaaaaaa??? Yeah, I don’t get it. It still sounds very much like an FN reject to me. Like if FN had been a 16 song album, I can easily imagine songs like Houdini and TS appearing for example.

And I also think Levitating is in the ultra rare all-time perfect Pop song tier, with the likes of Toxic or Since U Been Gone, and I 100% expect it to be impossible for her to ever top it.

[avamaxstan]

It seems like some of yall mentally group all dance-pop music together. Houdini and TS don’t fit sonically with FN at all, very different instrumentation and sonic landscape. Illusion I’d agree does

[haven]

Apr 14, 2024 18:43:53 GMT -5 avamaxstan said:

It seems like some of yall mentally group all dance-pop music together. Houdini and TS don’t fit sonically with FN at all, very different instrumentation and sonic landscape. Illusion I’d agree does

Illusion feels more like a pre-fn single to me, i find it more similar to one kiss than anything from fn.

[Juan Carlos]

SUNDAY PUBLISHED 4/14 UPDATE:

POP:
— 32 DUA LIPA Illusion 947 0 947 2.930

HOT AC:
— 40 DUA LIPA Illusion 149 0 149 0.299

Officially Top 40 on both Pop and Hot AC.

[rainie]

man i hate to say it but the songs just aren't there this era. none of them are bad, but i firmly believe the future nostalgia cycle was as successful as it was because the singles were all so consistently great (as well as the album minus the final two songs) and these are all around a 6/10 or so for me

it's interesting because on paper kevin parker should be a great pop producer and i think she was really smart to go in the psychedelic direction with it feeling like a natural progression from her last era + popular music in general embracing those sounds more and more but (and this take hinges on the assumption that parker is doing at least some of the songwriting here), he's not that great of a songwriter. you can see this on the last couple tame impala albums, where there's a couple fantastically written songs but then a good amount of mid ones which are carried to various extents by their production

the problem is that sharp writing and quality hooks is far more important with pop artists like dua lipa, especially when the production is naturally gonna be toned down vs some of tame impala's best moments. like, they're in a position where the current single is more or less in charge of making or breaking the era, and if the best they can summon on that front is a lesser hallucinate, then something went wrong in the writing process of this era

[stormlover74]

Apr 15, 2024 1:23:46 GMT -5 rainie said:

man i hate to say it but the songs just aren't there this era. none of them are bad, but i firmly believe the future nostalgia cycle was as successful as it was because the singles were all so consistently great (as well as the album minus the final two songs) and these are all around a 6/10 or so for me

it's interesting because on paper kevin parker should be a great pop producer and i think she was really smart to go in the psychedelic direction with it feeling like a natural progression from her last era + popular music in general embracing those sounds more and more but (and this take hinges on the assumption that parker is doing at least some of the songwriting here), he's not that great of a songwriter. you can see this on the last couple tame impala albums, where there's a couple fantastically written songs but then a good amount of mid ones which are carried to various extents by their production

the problem is that sharp writing and quality hooks is far more important with pop artists like dua lipa, especially when the production is naturally gonna be toned down vs some of tame impala's best moments. like, they're in a position where the current single is more or less in charge of making or breaking the era, and if the best they can summon on that front is a lesser hallucinate, then something went wrong in the writing process of this era

I tend to agree. I feel like she's chasing her next Levitating and trying to force it to happen. Then again all these singles are doing well in the UK but aren't having the staying power here. She released houdini the same day Jack Harlow released lovin on me and it's still hovering around the top 5 while Dua is on single #3

[Enigma.]

My two cents here:

First of all, I agree that apart from Houdini, the pop music CRAFT just isn't there - it's mostly polished Tame Impala/Danny L. Harle production to fit the US pop radio as well as possible.

Secondly, it seems odd that they are rushing all these singles out whilst it took literally 6 months to set the release date for the album. The album should've been released by the Grammy awards two months ago imo. I cannot help thinking that the era will be "over" as soon as the album hits the shelves (unless a viral track takes off but but it's a big IF).

[wavey.]

I love this. Imo she should've dropped this first. That chorus is simple, yet very effective☀️.

SN: after hearing the acapella, I can hear a different beat for this.