"Barbie Girl" Band Aqua Announces Barbie World Tour

Come on, Barbie, let's go party!

By Jamie Jirak

Barbie is the movie of the summer, and it's close to becoming the movie of the year. The Greta Gerwig film has broken multiple box office records, and soon it's being rereleased with new footage in IMAX. There's a whole lot to love about Barbie, including its soundtrack. There are many fan-favorite musicians on the line-up, including Nicki Minaj & Ice Spice. The duo sings "Barbie World," which samples the Danish pop band Aqua's 1997 hit "Barbie Girl." Last year, it was revealed that Aqua's song wouldn't be featured in the movie, so fans were thrilled when it still made it onto the soundtrack. With Barbie becoming such a phenomenon, it's no surprise to learn that Aqua is going back on tour. 

"AMERICA... You wanna go for a ride?? 🛸💕 Tickets on sale August 30th 10am EST," Aqua shared on Instagram, announcing their Barbie World Tour. You can check out their announcement below:

"We've been working for this for 27 years! Performing two sold out shows in NYC and L.A. this summer was a dream come true, and to be able to come back soon for a nation-wide tour is absolutely insane," Aqua said in a statement (via Billboard). "We cannot wait to meet everyone for the first time, face to face."

Why Wasn't "Barbie Girl" in Barbie?

While "Barbie Girl" may have been sampled in Barbie, there is a possible reason why the full version didn't make it into the movie.

"The song will not be used in the movie," Ulrich Møller-Jørgensen, who manages Aqua's lead singer Lene Nystrøm, told Variety last year.

At the time, Nystrøm did not expand on why the song would not be included, but it's likely due to the fact that Mattel sued Aqua over the release of the song. Mattel claimed the song violated the Barbie trademark and turned the doll into a sex object. Ultimately, the case was dismissed, and it sounds like things have healed between Mattel and Aqua. 

"We thought it would be like butter on bacon. We totally understood that they wanted something fresh and new," Nystrøm explained to The Guardian when asked about "Barbie Girl" and the collaboration with Ice Spice. "And then, just two months ago, we were asked to do the [Nicki Minaj and Ice Spice] collab. It happened really quickly."

Another member of Aqua, René Dif, also saw Mattel approaching the band as a kind of olive branch moment after all that drama. They said, "It's just nice to have Mattel come to us and say: 'Hey, that's cool.'"

Related:

Which Artists Are Featured On The Barbie Soundtrack?

The Barbie soundtrack includes Billie Eilish, Ava Max, Charli XCX, Dominic Fike, Dua Lipa, FIFTY FIFTY, Gayle, HAIM, Ice Spice, Kali, KAROL G, Khalid, Lizzo, Nicki Minaj, PinkPantheress, Tame Impala, and The Kid LAROI. Mark Ronson is the soundtrack's executive producer. 

What Is Barbie About?

In Barbie, to live in Barbie Land is to be a perfect being in a perfect place. Unless you have a full-on existential crisis. Or you're a Ken. From Oscar-nominated writer/director Greta Gerwig comes Barbie, which hit theaters on July 21st. Barbie stars Oscar-nominees Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling as Barbie and Ken, alongside America Ferrera, Kate McKinnon, Michael Cera, Ariana Greenblatt, Issa Rae, Rhea Perlman, and Will Ferrell. The film also stars Ana Cruz Kayne, Emma Mackey, Hari Nef, Alexandra Shipp, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Simu Liu, Ncuti Gatwa, Scott Evans, Jamie Demetriou, Connor Swindells, Sharon Rooney, Nicola Coughlan, Ritu Arya, Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Dua Lipa and Oscar-winner Helen Mirren. Gerwig directed Barbie from a screenplay by Gerwig & Oscar nominee Noah Baumbach, based on Barbie by Mattel.  

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