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Barbiecore Is Nothing New

Photo-Illustration: Vulture. Photos: Getty Images; Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Barbie has saturated the world with pink. Case in point: The film literally put more pressure on the global supply of pink paint. But Barbiecore — the hyperfeminine, super-pink, ultracoordinated fashion trend associated with the movie — isn’t a new look. “When you put up a timeline of the history of fashion, Barbiecore has always been there. We just didn’t call it that,†says fashion historian Darnell-Jamal Lisby, assistant curator of fashion at the Cleveland Museum of Art. “I think by the time you hit Clueless and, of course, the rise of superstars like Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie, which were kind of your real-life Barbie dolls, it became more of an identifiable presence.†Lisby also glimpses Barbiecore in Mean Girls, Heathers, The Nanny, and Hilary and Ashley Banks in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. And that’s before recognizing the contributions of Nicki Minaj, the pinnacle of Barbiecore. “She put herself in a space that historically was never meant for someone like Nicki Minaj, a young girl from Queens, New York,†Lisby says. Listen to the full episode of Into It and subscribe below to hear more about Minaj’s subversion of Barbiecore and the tricky space Barbie still occupies in pop culture.

Into It With Sam Sanders

Barbiecore Is Nothing New