PinkPantheress Channels Lost Love and Early 2000s Nostalgia on ‘Angel’ from ‘Barbie’ Soundtrack

Creating the ultimate dreamland for Greta Gerwig’s Barbie required a lot of pink. Production designer Sarah Greenwood recently shared that creating the film even caused an international shortage of that specific Barbie Pink shade of Rosco paints. The Barbie soundtrack, however, has more than enough pink to go around, especially on its latest single, “Angel” from PinkPantheress.

“Everyone tells me life was hard, but it’s a piece of cake/Even if Johnny hasn’t answered in a couple days,” she sings about Johnny, the Ken she introduced in the opening verse, while bragging all about how romantic he is. “You won’t check your phone so you can’t tell me you’re okay because/Johnny, my baby, did it always have to end this way?”

PinkPantheress wrote and produced “Angel” alongside BloodPop, Count Baldor, and Charlie Puth. Her leading on both ends explains why the record sounds like the perfect soundtrack to the Barbie dress-up games of the early 2000s that died when Adobe Flash Player did.

And the orchestral string section that fills the space during the instrumental break halfway through the song is reminiscent of two timeless markers of top-tier cinema: Barbie as the Princess and the Pauper (2004) and Barbie of Swan Lake (2003). On the strength of its soundtrack alone, Greta Gerwig’s Barbie is gunning to join them.

“Angel” marks the third single from Barbie the Album, set for release alongside the film on July 21. It follows Dua Lipa’s tone-setting lead record “Dance the Night” and Karol G’s reggaetón party “Watati.” The record, executive produced by Mark Ronson, will also feature appearances from Ava Max, Charli XCX, Dominic Fike, Fifty Fifty, Gayle, Haim, Ice Spice, Kali, Karol G, Khalid, Lizzo, Nicki Minaj, Ryan Gosling, Tame Impala, and the Kid Laroi.

From Rolling Stone US.