Albania’s president granted citizenship to British pop star of Albanian origin Dua Lipa on Sunday, citing the artist’s role in bringing Albanians to international prominence through her music.
Lipa was granted citizenship by President Bajram Begaj ahead of Albania’s 110th anniversary of independence from the Ottoman Empire. Begaj said it was an honor to do so because Lipa has made Albanians famous all over the world.
“I’ll be an Albanian with papers, too,” Lipa said as she took her citizenship oath at Tirana City Hall.
Lipa was born in London in 1995 to Kosovo-born immigrant parents Anesa and Dukagjin Lipa.
Lipa, who began singing at the age of five, was musically influenced by her father, a former rock band singer, and guitarist. She began uploading her songs to YouTube when she was 14 years old. In 2017, she released her debut studio album. She won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 2019.
In 2016, she co-founded the Sunny Hill Foundation with her father to raise funds for people in financial need through annual concerts in her home country of Kosovo.
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“With such acceptance, love, and everything,” Lipa said, “it is an indescribable great joy.” The artist was then photographed for a passport, fingerprinted, and signed an application form for an identity card and passport.
Lipa will conclude her annual concert tour on Monday in Tirana’s main Skanderbeg Square to commemorate Independence Day.
