Barbie Girl

"Barbie Girl" is a song by the Danish-Norwegian dance-pop group Aqua. It was released in May 1997 as the third single from the group's debut studio album, "Aquarium" (1997). The song was written by Søren Rasted, Claus Norreen, René Dif, and Lene Nystrøm, and was produced by Johnny Jam, Delgado, Rasted, and Norreen. It was written after Rasted saw an exhibit on kitsch culture in Denmark that featured Barbie dolls.
The song topped the charts worldwide, particularly in European countries such as the United Kingdom, where it was a number-one hit for four weeks and remains one of the best-selling singles of all time. It also reached number 2 in the group's homeland and peaked at number 7 on the US "Billboard" Hot 100, where it remains Aqua's biggest hit single and their only one to reach the top 20 of the Hot 100. It is Aqua's most popular work. The song was performed as the interval act in the Eurovision Song Contest 2001. It also became the subject of the controversial lawsuit "Mattel v. MCA Records".
Background.
The lyrics of the song are about Barbie and Ken, the dolls made by Mattel. Both the song and its music video feature Lene Nystrøm as Barbie and René Dif as Ken. As such, the lyrics drew the ire of Barbie's corporate owners, and a lawsuit was filed by Mattel.
A footnote on the back of the "Aquarium" CD case precisely stated that "The song 'Barbie Girl' is a social comment and was not created or approved by the makers of the doll."
Reception.
Critical reception.
Stephen Thomas Erlewine from AllMusic called the song "one of those inexplicable pop culture phenomena" and "insanely catchy", describing it as a "bouncy, slightly warped Euro-dance song that simultaneously sends up femininity and Barbie dolls." Larry Flick from "Billboard" wrote that "with her squeaky, high-pitched delivery, Lene Grawford Nystrom fronts this giddy pop/dance ditty as if she were Barbie, gleefully verbalizing many of the twisted things people secretly do with the doll." He noted that "at the same time, she effectively rants about the inherent misogyny of Barbie with a subversive hand", adding that Rene Dif is an "equally playful and biting presence, as he embodies male counterpart Ken with an amusing leer." "Daily Record" stated, "Love them or hate them, you have to admit Aqua's silly doll song is pure pop and the video is great, too". David Browne from "Entertainment Weekly" described it as a "dance-floor novelty that alludes to the secret, less-than-wholesome life of every little girl's fave doll." Another editor, Jeremy Helligar commented, "There must be something in that Northern European water. Like recent tunes by their Swedish-pop counterparts Ace of Base and the Cardigans, these Danish newcomers' frothy debut is fun, fun, fun — but oh so disposable." Insider stated that "Barbie Girl" is "sugary sweet" and "totally catchy". "People Magazine" called it "the year's best novelty record, a cartoonish anthem you'll need surgery to remove from your head." Also Pop Rescue wrote that "this song is fun, undoubtedly catchy, and bouncy, with the personas of Barbie and Ken fitting perfectly with the vocal contrast."
The song was voted the fourth "Best Number One of All Time" in a VH1 poll. In an unrelated VH1 countdown, "VH1's 100 Greatest One-Hit Wonders", the song ranked number 88. Australian music channel Max placed "Barbie Girl" at number 371 in their list of "1000 Greatest Songs of All Time" in 2018. In 2017, "BuzzFeed" listed the song at number 76 in their list of "The 101 Greatest Dance Songs Of the '90s".
Commercial performance.
"Barbie Girl" has sold more than 8 million copies worldwide. It went on becoming a huge hit on several continents, remaining the most successful song
by the band. It reached number-one in more than 10 countries. In Europe, the single peaked at the top position in Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Scotland, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, as well as on the Eurochart Hot 100. In the band's native Denmark, the song debuted and peaked at number 2. In the United Kingdom, it debuted on the UK Singles Chart at number 2, and reached number-one the next week, at October 26, 1997. It stayed at that position for four weeks and has sold 1.84 million copies in the United Kingdom as of April 2017, making it the thirteenth best-selling single in the UK. Outside Europe, "Barbie Girl" peaked at number-one in Australia and New Zealand, number 4 in Canada and number 7 on the US "Billboard" Hot 100. On the latter, it debuted at that position. It sold 82,000 copies in its first week and debuted at number 5 also on the Hot Singles Sales chart.
Music video.
The music video was directed by Danish directors Peder Pedersen and Peter Stenbæk. It depicts the band members in various scenes that a Barbie doll would be in. Uploaded to YouTube in August 2010, as of February 2021 the video has more than 849.4 million views.
Controversies.
Mattel lawsuit.
In December 2000, Mattel, the manufacturer of the Barbie doll, sued MCA Records, Aqua's record label. Mattel claimed that "Barbie Girl" violated their trademark and turned her into a sex object, referring to her as a "Blonde Bimbo". It alleged that the song infringed its copyrights and trademarks on the Barbie doll, and that the song's lyrics had ruined the longtime popularity and reputation of their trademark and impinged on their marketing plan. Aqua and MCA Records claimed that Mattel injected their own meanings into the song's lyrics. They contested Mattel's claims and countersued for defamation after Mattel had likened MCA to a bank robber. The lawsuit filed by Mattel was dismissed by the lower courts, and this dismissal was upheld, though Mattel took their case up to the Supreme Court of the United States, but that appeal was later rejected. In 2002, a Court of Appeals ruled the song was protected as a parody under the trademark doctrine of nominative use and the First Amendment to the United States Constitution; the judge Alex Kozinski also threw out the defamation lawsuit that Aqua's record company filed against Mattel, concluding his ruling: "The parties are advised to chill." The case was dismissed.
In 2009, Mattel released a series of advertisements and a promotional music video of the song, with modified lyrics, as part of a new marketing strategy brought in to revive sales.
2001 Eurovision Song Contest.
As the interval act during the 2001 Eurovision Song Contest, Aqua performed a medley of their singles alongside percussion ensemble Safri Duo. There were several complaints due to the profanity used during the performance, both at the beginning and end of "Barbie Girl".
Track listings.
These are the formats and track listings of major single releases of "Barbie Girl".
United Kingdom/Europe
Europe
Australia, US and Canada
Credits.
Credits adapted from liner notes of the "Barbie Girl" CD single and "Aquarium".
Cover versions and parodies.
The song has been covered by several artists throughout years. Alternative metal band Faith No More covered the song live in 1997 during their "Album of the Year" tour. Identical twin sisters Amanda and Samantha Marchant, better known as Samanda, released their cover of the song on 8 October 2007, and it entered the UK Singles Chart at number 26. Girls' Generation's Jessica Jung covered this song as her solo performance during the first Asian concert tour "Girls' Generation 1st Asia Tour: Into the New World". The Swedish artist did a new version of this song for the Swedish radio show . He interprets the song as criticism of today's beauty ideals. In 2013, Ludacris sampled the song in his single "Party Girls" featuring Wiz Khalifa, Jeremih and Cashmere Cat. In 2016, Caramella Girls released a version called "Candy Girl" on iTunes, as well as a YouTube music video.
There are also many parodies of the song, including a parody called Ugly Girl, with an unverified author (often wrongly credited to Weird Al Yankovic, Adam Henderson, or Jack off Jill). German duo Lynne & Tessa made a lip-synched internet video of the song in 2006, and on British Indian sketch comedy show "Goodness Gracious Me", where a version titled "Punjabi Girl" was featured in the radio series and later on television. In 2012, the song was parodied in an Australian lamb advertising campaign, relying on the Australian use of the term "barbie" to refer to the outdoor barbecue popularly held in Australia. The advertisement starred Melissa Tkautz and Sam Kekovich. In 2014, the song was used in the "South Park" episode "Cock Magic". Ava Max recorded a version with new lyrics, titled "Not Your Barbie Girl", in 2018.
In 1999, released an Indonesian version of this song with the title "Boneka Barbie".
Kelly Key version.
In 2005, Brazilian recording artist Kelly Key recorded a version in Portuguese for her third studio album "Kelly Key". The version was released as second single on 15 August 2005. Key said she loved the song and wanted to do a version for honor: "I really like this song since I heard. I wanted to record without thinking about whether my fans will like it or not".
The song received generally negative reviews from music critics. Vinícius Versiani Durães of IMHO said that that version was funny and a future success. Marcos Paulo Bin of Universo Musical commented that the song was really different from previous releases – known for explicit lyrics – but was positive and said the version was good. Rodrigo Ortega of Pilula Pop said "Barbie Girl" was sensational, funny and chose as the best of the album. He also said that Key was wrong to have released "Escuta Aqui Rapaz" as her first single, because "the song was boring", but "Barbie Girl" saved the era. Carlos Eduardo Lima of Scream & Yell was negative and said the song was "childish, silly, boring" and killed Kelly Key as a sex-symbol.
The music video for "Barbie Girl" was recorded on 17 and 18 August 2005. It was directed by Ricardo Vereza, Bidu Madio, Rentz and Mauricio Eça. In the video, released on 30 August, Kelly plays a determined and feminist woman.
This song is internationally notable to be wrongly attributed to Czech model Dominika Myslivcová as she uploaded a video in YouTube lip-synching to this song and, later, it became a viral video.
References in media.
Environmental movements, like "Fridays for Future", when trying to bring attention to the heavy amounts of plastic thrown by humans into the seas, have referred the song lyrics in their slogans with the words "Life in plastic is not fantastic".