Dua Lipa brought both glamour and advocacy to West Hollywood on Thursday night, headlining a surprise performance at The Abbey in support of National PrEP Day. The event, hosted by telehealth company Mistr, marked the first official observance of the new awareness day and celebrated a milestone of helping 10,000 people begin using PrEP, the preventive medication that protects against HIV.

What began as a night of drag, dancing, and community turned into an unexpected moment of pop culture activism. Drag stars Symone, Plastique Tiara, and Aquaria opened the show with performances set to Lipa’s biggest hits, from “Levitating” to “Dance the Night.” Then, in a surprise that electrified the crowd, Lipa herself appeared on stage to perform “New Rules” and “Don’t Start Now” alongside her Radical Optimism tour dancers.

The evening culminated in a collective performance of “Houdini,” with the singer joined by the drag queens in a celebration of visibility, joy, and sexual health. For Lipa, the night was not just about music, but about amplifying a vital message.

“I think there’s a lot of stigma around HIV and sexually transmitted infections,” Lipa told Rolling Stone backstage after the show. “If we can de-stigmatize what it means to get the right healthcare for HIV, I want to believe there’s hope that it can be completely eradicated.”

Lipa emphasized that conversations about sexual health should center on empowerment rather than shame. “Sex should be fun, and it should be safe,” she said. “With intimacy, there’s safety, there’s connection and you want to make sure you stay protected too. I hope it becomes shameless. It’s so important to take care of ourselves. That, in itself, is very sexy.”

National PrEP Day was launched to encourage awareness and accessibility for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), which can prevent HIV when taken regularly as a pill or administered periodically as an injection. Mistr, founded by Tristan Schukraft, provides free or low-cost access to the medication regardless of insurance status, a mission Lipa said she was proud to support.

“I think it’s an incredible cause,” she explained. “What Mistr is doing to make PrEP accessible for everyone, with or without medical insurance, is such an important thing, especially in America. I’m lucky to have been asked to be a part of it.”

Schukraft said he believed Lipa was the ideal artist to help redefine how sexual health is discussed and celebrated. “How many parties have you been to that celebrate sexual health?” he said. “That’s exactly what National PrEP Day is about, taking something that’s often talked about quietly and making it something we celebrate together with pride. Dua understands that better than anyone. She’s fearless, inclusive, and she uses her platform to lift people.”

The event drew a diverse mix of celebrities, activists, and fans, including Kim Petras, Omar Apollo, Matt Bomer, Cynthia Bailey, and Nene Leakes. Cardi B was spotted cheering from the crowd, and Demi Lovato took to the DJ booth to debut her new track “Kiss.”