By Pranav Parlapall

On June 23, 2023, Ice Spice and Nicki Minaj released “Barbie World,” one of the most popular hip-hop songs of the year. Barbie World surged in popularity, even being nominated for MTV Video Music Awards under the category of “Songs of Summer.” Barbie, along with its full soundtrack, was released on July 21, 2023, and Barbie World was the 3rd most streamed song with about 324 million streams on Spotify. Barbie World gave its movie great publicity and helped it become the highest-grossing movie worldwide, so let’s analyze the song and its pros and cons. 

“Barbie World” is a brief and concise song with a runtime of just over a minute and a half, and has a creative flow inspired by Aqua’s “Barbie Girl.” The song has a few components that make it stand out, such as its exciting beat and heavy bass, which immediately hook listeners in. It’s also a generally catchy song to listen to, and because of its connection to “Barbie Girl,” rap enthusiasts have been finding the song very entertaining. If you’re someone who enjoys short and upbeat songs, then Barbie World is for you because its hook, along with its tempo and pattern, makes it an extremely engaging song. 

Despite Barbie World’s unique qualities, there remains plenty of room for improvement. Ice Spice isn’t exactly known for her lyricism, and it shows during Barbie World. Nicki Minaj, one of the greatest female rappers of all time, is known not only for her lyrics, but also her delivery and style. Barbie World is very similar to previous music released by Ice Spice with the same basic flow and progression. The song also isn’t vastly different from the last collaboration between Ice Spice and Nicki Minaj—“Princess Diana.” Although both of these songs are extremely popular, they don’t contain distinct features. We have seen the same problems in recent music released by Ice Spice, but Barbie World is a significant improvement nonetheless. She is widely known for “Munch (Feelin’ U)” and “In Ha Mood,” both having a surprising number of streams from unironic listeners.

The Verdict

However, despite these criticisms, Barbie World is an incredibly fun listen, especially if you’re a fan of Nicki Minaj and Ice Spice’s discography.