Dua Lipa Selects a Britney Spears Hit as a Pop Benchmark

Dua Lipa recently named Britney Spears’s 2004 single “Toxic” as one of the greatest pop songs ever made. The declaration came during a segment for Vogue where she paired cocktails with significant songs. For Lipa, the track exists outside its era, a piece she feels would dominate charts if released today.

Her choice points to a specific kind of pop durability. “Toxic” is a song built on a tension between its sleek, forward-moving production and a vocal delivery that feels both intimate and theatrical. The track’s famous string sample, taken from a Bollywood film score, provides an immediate, disorienting hook. This production choice created a distinct texture that still separates the song from its mid-2000s peers.

Lipa’s commentary indirectly touches on the song’s known history. The writing process, led by Cathy Dennis and Bloodshy & Avant, has been described as difficult, with Dennis calling it “torture” to complete. This context makes Lipa’s praise more pointed. She is valuing the final, seemingly effortless product over the struggle it took to create it, a common pop paradox where the easiest listening often requires the hardest work.

For an artist like Lipa, who operates within a similarly polished and globally-minded pop sphere, this selection is a form of lineage. It acknowledges a predecessor who mastered the art of the high-concept, meticulously constructed single. She isn’t just recalling a nostalgic hit. She is identifying a song that represents a functional ideal, a benchmark for pop songwriting where every element, from the aggressive metaphor of its title to the whip-crack rhythm, serves the track’s immediate impact.