Dua Lipa Opens Up About Childhood in U.K. and Kosovo: 'I've Always Been the New Girl'

Dua Lipa is reflecting on her childhood.

The “Levitating” singer, 27, spoke candidly about her experiences growing up in the U.K. and Kosovo and “persistence” in following her “dream of being a pop star” at the Hay Festival in Wales on Sunday, reported the BBC.

“From a young age, I had the dream to be a pop star but it never seemed like something that was actually possible," Lipa said in reference to her childhood moving between Kosovo and London, added the BBC. "I've been a new girl all my life.”

"I understood the duality of my heritage from an early age," added Lipa, who relocated to Kosovo with her parents at 11 but returned to the British capital at 15 to finish high school.

"People would always ask where my name is from,” the “Break My Heart” singer continued, reported the BBC. "I was really proud of it, but when I was younger I wished my name was, say, Hannah — something 'normal' and English."

The end result was that by age 17, Lipa said she was “determined” to focus on her music career and embarked on fulfilling her dream after completing school.

"I was quite determined," Lipa said, per the BBC.

"My dad says I'm very hard to say no to!" she added. "I was really persistent. I just started writing a lot, worked with a producer. I was 17. I was offered a publishing deal but [producer] Felix told me to go to a lawyer, who said, 'Don't sign that deal!' They then helped me get into the studio."

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It wasn't all smooth sailing for the "Cold Heart" star, however. When speaking to the audience at the annual literature festival, she shared that when she was younger, she was "in a relationship with someone who had a very different idea of fidelity than I had," reported the BBC.

Away from the music world, Lipa is setting her sights on conquering the fashion world too. In May, the Grammy winner unveiled her first-ever collaboration with a high-fashion brand with Versace's La Vacanza women's collection. Additionally, according to a release from the brand, "this collection marks the first time the iconic fashion house has opened up the design process to a collaborator in this way."

The design collaboration between Versace creative director Donatella Versace and Lipa, who had previously released collections with Pepe Jeans and Puma, made for the "perfect duo," as Donatella shared in a press release.

Lipa seconded the iconic fashion designer's statement in the cover story for DAZED's Summer Issue – which saw her model the new collection blue chainmail miniskirt, bedazzled pink halter top and gold greco-Medusa logo chain belt – saying it was "one of the very rare occasions where I work with someone, and it really is exactly how you envision it."

Closer to home Lipa features on the tracklist for Barbie the Album alongside Lizzo, Ice Spice, Haim and Nicki Minaj. Her disco-style track "Dance the Night Away," was also the first single to be released from the soundtrack.