Barbie Girl is a song released in 1997 by the Danish-Norwegian dance-pop group Aqua, which was included in their album Aquarium. The song about Barbie and Ken, the two famous dolls made by Mattel, became a chart-topper worldwide, and has drawn the attention of both fans and critics. While the song has made it to some "Best Songs" lists, the song has also received the attention of critics. Blender Magazine, for example, included the song in their "50 Worst Songs Ever" list, while AOL Radio has also included it on their "100 Worst Songs Ever" list.
When you first listen to it, the song may seem innocent--it does make references to the famous Barbie doll, well-loved by young girls around the world, across generations. If you do listen to it more closely, however, you will realize that the song is full of sexual innuendos. With lyrics that go "You can brush my hair, undress me everywhere" or "Kiss me here, touch me there, hanky panky" you'd realize that this song isn't exactly something you'd want young children to dance to (though the music video looks very attractive for children).
Mattel, Inc., who created the Barbie doll, ended up suing Aqua. They claimed that the song had violated the Barbie trademark, and that the song ruined the Barbie trademark's reputation by calling Barbie a "blonde bimbo" and reducing her to a sex object. The court, however, dismissed the case in 2002 and ruled that the song was considered a parody. The court also dismissed MCA records' (Aqua's record company) defamation lawsuit filed against Mattel. Judge Alex Kozinski, who handled these cases, said: "The parties are advised to chill". These lawsuits only helped increase the popularity of the song and the band, who did receive awards at the height of their popularity. In 2009, Mattel did end up using the song (with modified lyrics), as part of a new marketing campaign, called "Do the Barbie Dance".
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