One Kiss
by Calvin Harris (featuring Dua Lipa)

Album: 96 Months (2018)
Charted: 1 26
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This uptempo track finds Calvin Harris paying homage to '90s-style house music. The song features seductive vocals about the power of a kiss by Dua Lipa. Harris has been a fan of the British-Albanian songstress since she released "Be The One" in 2015. "I just want to make dance music again, it seemed like a good opportunity to make a house-sounding record with her," he said in an interview with Zane Lowe.
  • Dua Lipa is no stranger to successful collaborations, having scored UK Top 20 hits on "Scared To Be Lonely" with Martin Garrix and Sean Paul's "No Lie."
  • The song's throwback house vibe is complemented by its lyric video which features VHS-quality footage of two couples being played on a vintage television in an outdoor setting.
  • The song was literally homemade. Harris recalled his recording session with Dua Lipa: "It was lovely. She come round the house…One of the very few sessions where I literally, I mean nowadays with vocals and all that I like to have an engineer, he can record and chop them up because it's the hardest part of the job for me, but this time I just did it all myself. It was nice, had a little cup of tea. Lovely."
  • "One Kiss" climbed from #3 to #1 in its second week on the UK singles chart, giving Calvin Harris his ninth UK chart-topper. For Dua Lipa, it was her second visit to the summit, following 2017 smash hit "New Rules."
  • Dua Lipa told Billboard she admires the way Calvin Harris is always looking to develop his sound. "What [Harris] does," she said, "[Is that] he just has fun with everything he does and nothing really sounds like something that you've heard before. I think with him, and what you see from all his previous songs, is that everything's constantly evolving and that you should never be afraid to change."
  • The collaboration between Dua Lipa and Calvin Harris was all the Scottish DJ's idea. "Calvin really kinda reached out to me and he was like, 'Oh, are you gonna come to L.A. any time soon? We should work in the studio together,'" Dua recalled to ABC Radio. "And I was like, 'I'd absolutely love that. I'm touring and I'll be in LA on these days.' And I just went down to the studio and that's what we did."
  • Dua Lipa performed this at the Grammy Awards in 2019 with St. Vincent; the pair also did part of Vincent's "Masseduction." Lipa won Best New Artist at the ceremony.
  • This won Best Single at the 2019 BRIT Awards. Harris was also named British Producer of the Year at the ceremony.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Lori McKenna

Lori McKennaSongwriter Interviews

Lori's songs have been recorded by Faith Hill and Sara Evans. She's performed on the CMAs and on Oprah. She also has five kids.

Keith Reid of Procol Harum

Keith Reid of Procol HarumSongwriter Interviews

As Procol Harum's lyricist, Keith wrote the words to "A Whiter Shade Of Pale." We delve into that song and find out how you can form a band when you don't sing or play an instrument.

Julian Lennon

Julian LennonSongwriter Interviews

Julian tells the stories behind his hits "Valotte" and "Too Late for Goodbyes," and fills us in on his many non-musical pursuits. Also: what MTV meant to his career.

Zac Hanson

Zac HansonSongwriter Interviews

Zac tells the story of Hanson's massive hit "MMMbop," and talks about how brotherly bonds effect their music.

Tim McIlrath of Rise Against

Tim McIlrath of Rise AgainstSongwriter Interviews

Rise Against frontman Tim McIlrath explains the meanings behind some of their biggest songs and names the sci-fi books that have influenced him.

Mike Campbell

Mike CampbellSongwriter Interviews

Mike is lead guitarist with Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, and co-writer of classic songs like "Boys Of Summer," "Refugee" and "The Heart Of The Matter."