At this point, it should go without saying that the Barbie soundtrack is lit. Dua Lipa, Sam Smith, and Nicki Minaj are all lending their talents to making the movie sound as good as it looks. Enter Billie Eilish, who is bringing not only the sentimental feels to the movie, but is also getting in on the act of dressing like Barbie herself.
The Grammy winner dropped her track ‘What Was I Made For’ the week before Barbie hits theaters. The simplistic video packs a big punch, as we watch Billie step on screen dressed in an iconic 1950’s inspired yellow dress with matching saddle shoes. Completing the look, Billie has her hair tied back in a pony, with curled blonde bangs framing her face. Put her up on a shelf, and she might as well be the doll!
While the plot for the Barbie movie still remains somewhat of a mystery, the trailers and promos suggest that everyone’s favorite fashionista/doctor/president/ super doll will be going through an existential crisis. (In one moment, she actually asks her Barbie friends if they know what happens when they die!) Billie’s song, which she composed alongside her brother FINNEAS, seems to meet the mode of this crisis, with lyrics exploring the deep concerns of not knowing one’s true self.
“I used to float, now I just fall down/ I used to know but I’m not sure now/ What I was made for/ What was I made for?” sings Billie, and in the video, as she continues to ponder her purpose, she’s pelted with a forceful wind that blows away all her favorite things: clothes, shoes, and accessories — all doll sized, of course – which then transitions into a pounding rain!
Billie dropped a snippet of the video on Instagram, while also sharing just how happy she was to write music for the Greta Gerwig directed, Margot Robbie–starring film. “This video makes me cryyyyy..” she wrote in the caption. “It means so much to me and i hope it will mean just as much to you.”
The soundtrack for the Barbie movie brings together a cavalcade of talent not seen on a movie soundtrack for some time. Dua Lipa was the first artist to drop a single for the movie with the trailer, called ‘Dance the Night’. The day of the movie release, Sam Smith will drop their track, ‘Man I Am’, an ode to Ryan Gosling’s portrayal of Ken. Then there’s Lizzo, Charli XCX, Hair, Gayle, and so many others dropping new music as part of the soundtrack.
But the big guns were pulled out by Nicki Minaj herself, who collaborated with Ice Spice and 90’s smash makers Aqua on a reboot of the hit song Barbie Girl called Barbie World. Wrapped in plastic — it’s fantastic!