With the SAG-AFTRA strike lastly over, MoMA plunged forward with its sixteenth annual “The Contenders” series, supported by Chanel and working by means of January 10. On Thursday night time, attendees on the museum have been handled to a screening of Barbie and a particular dialogue between Dua Lipa—wearing Chanel couture—producer Mark Ronson, and musician and songwriter Andrew Wyatt, who delved into the creation of their music “Dance the Night time” for the film’s soundtrack. The dialog, moderated by Rajendra Roy, chief curator of movie at MoMA, offered perception into the collaborative course of behind the movie’s chart-topping, party-ready hit; touched on Lipa, Ronson, and Wyatt’s marketing campaign for a finest music nomination on the 2024 Oscars; and unpacked the idea of “dance-crying.” See some video highlights beneath.
Mark Ronson on being approached by Greta Gerwig to work on Barbie:
Mark Ronson: Any person texted me and mentioned, “Hey, do you need to speak to Greta Gerwig concerning the new film she’s doing?” I used to be such a fan of Girl Hen and Little Girls. And [Gerwig] mentioned, “I am doing Barbie.” It sounded so wild and outlandish and funky. After which I learn the script that she wrote with Noah [Baumbach], and I simply cherished it a lot and I form of simply acquired it. And [Gerwig] mentioned, “I want two songs at first.” She despatched me this humorous PDF that mentioned, Some Outlines for Barbie and Ken Hit Songs’ which was form of tongue-in-cheek. It was like, proper, we all need to write successful!
Dua Lipa and Mark Ronson on writing “Dance the Night time”
MR: [Greta] mentioned, “There’s a Barbie music, which goes to be on the finish of her finest day ever, and simply at this second earlier than the world shifts for her, however it simply must be essentially the most enjoyable, disco, effusive document. After which there must be a Ken music,” and she or he’s like, “I do not know what that’s…It simply ought to be a music from his perspective.” It was by no means presupposed to have this a lot music or be such a musical, and it simply all form of unraveled from there.
Dua Lipa: It was such a special expertise, the place once I’m writing a music for myself, I include the concept of how I’m feeling or what I need to write about. This fashion, I used to be embodying a personality, and I already had the task and I had the story behind Barbie’s finest day ever. Then she begins having these ideas about demise, and it was like, Okay, how will we create the right disco music with an underlying story that reveals somewhat little bit of a shaky floor? I believe first we did a model based mostly on a dance rehearsal that we noticed, and what Greta had informed us was about to occur within the film. And so we form of went somewhat bit deeper into the extra tumultuous facet of Barbie’s existential disaster. After which I believe after we noticed it with the image, and we have been listening to the music whereas watching it, then our perspective form of modified somewhat bit and we have been like, Okay, perhaps we’ve acquired to drag her again to the sunshine somewhat bit, as a result of we acquired to provide Barbie her optimism as effectively. Even when issues aren’t going proper, you’ll be able to dance by means of it. I believe that is basically the message of the music. And I believe that optimism is so very important to the human expertise general, it doesn’t matter what you are going by means of. With the ability to push by means of, indirectly.
Lipa on writing for a movie soundtrack
DL: I believe music—and disco music specifically—was all the time such an enormous type of the expression of freedom, and it gave individuals a way of neighborhood and togetherness. [Disco] was all the time the form of music that actually introduced individuals collectively. And so to have that form of duality—of the happy-sad, or [as] I wish to name it, “dance crying”—I felt like that was actually essential. So we went in and we rewrote [the song], after which we additionally began engaged on the lyrics somewhat bit extra like a rating. There have been moments the place, whereas we have been seeing the image and listening to the music, Barbie does a transfer like this, and I am like, Oh, we’ve to only say, “Come alongside for the experience!” Intertwining the lyric to the film felt like such a novel and completely different expertise—in contrast to something I would ever labored on earlier than.
Ronson and Wyatt’s recommendation for Lipa as she enters the Oscar marketing campaign path—almost 5 years after they received with Girl Gaga for “Shallow”
Andrew Wyatt: Nicely, Dua is already a kind of those that should you see her at a celebration or should you’re at an occasion, you are like, Wow, is that this a dream? However that was the one factor about the entire Oscars factor, is you’ll be in a room and also you’re sitting and Daniel Craig is right here. It was like, I had a dream that I used to be sitting in a room with Helen Mirren, and Daniel Craig was dancing along with his spouse over right here, and Willem Dafoe walked in carrying two drinks. Dua is already a kind of individuals, so [she] ought to in all probability really feel fairly relaxed. However I believe it is essential to absorb that the entire thing’s only a large journey. It is simply all bizarre. And that is okay.
MR: Additionally, to be trustworthy, we actually did not need to do a lot as a result of Girl Gaga was [there]. We’re lowly songwriters. And [she is] Dua Lipa—individuals get excited, and it’s totally glamorous and glitzy. However to be trustworthy, we didn’t need to do half as a lot as what you are going to need to do. I am so sorry.
Dua Lipa on the potential of doing extra appearing
DL: Gosh, perhaps. I actually simply cherished the expertise. I completely cherished working with Greta, and despite the fact that it was a small function, simply form of diving into a brand new character and exploring that was actually, actually enjoyable. I additionally labored on a movie with Matthew Vaughn known as Argylle, which comes out in February. So I am very enthusiastic about that too. However music is basically my primary love. It is one thing that I really feel like with each album and each session and each music that I put out, I discover my toes somewhat bit extra, and I get extra assured and I consider in myself and my craft and who I’m as an artist and as a performer extra. And I am actually having fun with being in that area as a songwriter and as an artist. And so music will all the time be primary for me, after which we’ll see. We’ll take child steps.
