Lifestyle Beauty & Style Dua Lipa Jokes Harry Houdini's Penchant for Getting Punched Must've Been His 'Kink' The pop star spoke about the magician, who inspired her latest single "Houdini," during an appearance on 'Late Night with Seth Meyers' By Jack Irvin Jack Irvin Jack Irvin has over five years of experience working in digital journalism, and he’s worked at PEOPLE since 2022. Jack started in the industry with internships at Rolling Stone and Entertainment Tonight, and he worked as a freelance writer for publications including Bustle, MTV News, Shondaland, L’Officiel USA, Ladygunn, Flood and PopCrush before joining PEOPLE. In his current role, Jack covers daily music news and has interviewed both up-and-coming and established artists including Dolly Parton, Michelle Branch, Ashanti, Cyndi Lauper, Normani, Carly Rae Jepsen and Coco Jones. People Editorial Guidelines Published on December 12, 2023 12:15PM EST Despite releasing a new single called "Houdini," Dua Lipa wasn't sure how the actual Harry Houdini died. While appearing on Wednesday's episode of Late Night with Seth Meyers for a "Day Drinking" segment with the show's host, the pop star was informed Houdini reportedly died after getting punched in the stomach — as he apparently believed physical strikes had no effect on him. "We're going to do, in honor of Houdini, whose spirit Dua has stolen without his permission," joked Meyers, 49, introducing their next round of drinks before asking the Grammy winner, 28, "Do you know how he died?" Dua Lipa. Lloyd Bishop/NBC via Getty Unaware of the reason behind Houdini's death at age 52 in 1926, Lipa responded, "How?" "He got, like, punched," said Meyers. "His whole thing was, 'You can put me in a safe, throw me in the water, I'll get out.' But he also had this weird thing where he was like, 'You can also punch me as hard as you want, and I'm fine.'" "That has to be a kink," said Lipa with a laugh. "It's a kink, for sure." Dua Lipa Says It Was a 'No-Brainer' When Mark Ronson Asked Her to Write a Song for the Big ‘Barbie’ Dance Scene Dua Lipa and Seth Meyers. Meyers' explanation of Houdini's death is somewhat accurate, but the details are a bit more complicated. According to Yale University Press, the magician was punched in the stomach by McGill University student J. Gordon Whitehead backstage at the Princess Theatre in Montreal on Oct. 22, 1926. Houdini died about a week later, but Yale University Press states that he was already feeling ill with abdominal pain before the punch and continued performing shows despite doctors' advice to cancel. His appendix had burst by the time he received an operation on Oct. 25, causing peritonitis, and he died on Oct. 31. Dua Lipa Says Buying the Rights to Her Own Music 'Feels Really Good': 'Something I Always Wanted to Have' It's unlikely Houdini's death was directly caused by the punch, but it is true that he died after facing the brunt of Whitehead's fist. Elsewhere in the Late Night segment, Meyers and Lipa crafted a beverage called the "Hou-tini" — which contained vodka, tequila, white rum, blue curaçao and lemon. "Everybody's got this at home. Don't feel weird if you're at a house party. Feel free to order the 'Hou-tini,'" joked the talk show host. Released last month, Lipa's single "Houdini" is an upbeat pop song featuring lyrics comparing exiting a relationship to Houdini's famous disappearing tricks. "I come and I go / Tell me all the ways you need me / I'm not here for long / Catch me or I go Houdini," she sings on the track. Dua Lipa Reflects on Her Favorite Parts of Being Single: 'You Get to Learn So Much About Yourself' Dua Lipa in Los Angeles in November 2023. Monica Schipper/Variety via Getty Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. In a recent interview with Audacy's Check In podcast, the pop star opened up about how the song was inspired by "the fun parts" of being single — presumably before she was first romantically linked to French filmmaker Romain Gavras in February 2023. "You’re discovering yourself, you’re figuring out what you like, what you don’t like, what you deserve, what serves you and doesn’t in certain instances," said Lipa of how her past single status influenced the song, as well as "learning to read red flags and just being like, ‘OK, this actually isn’t for me,’ and then choosing when to stay and when to 'Houdini,' essentially, in all those situations.” Close