User:MaranoFan/BOAHG

Background

 * Vulture - Consult this whole interview with Mark Ronson
 * Variety - Consult this whole interview with Mark Ronson
 * RS - good details
 * Billboard
 * Consequence - "The track immediately clocks as the instrumental from the film’s newly released trailer"
 * EW - "the first single from the upcoming Barbie movie soundtrack"
 * NME
 * BBC - did not play Dance the Night at Glastonbury
 * Dig! - "“Barbie completely took over our lives — we were completely Barb-ified,” “We were putting post-it notes everywhere, trying to brainstorm what ‘Dance the Night’ was going to be.” said Lipa. “We rewrote Dance The Night so many times to match the picture,” producer Ronson recently told Variety. “Like, Dua was literally coming up with lyrics — ‘When Margo does that come-hither thing with her fingers [in the scene], that’s when I want to sing “Come along for the ride,’ We actually engineered that song almost like a score.”
 * Deadline - started with the melody, "the longest I’ve ever worked on any song", "What I like to do best is dance-crying, it’s really my favorite genre ever. The idea of having this juxtaposition of really, really happy moments, but not only are there underlying thoughts of death, but at same time, you’re trying to juggle this idea that Barbie is not trying to upset anyone, she’s having these thoughts, she doesn’t know who to go to, she’s trying to smile through the pain; all these things are happening, and it’s all confusing, how do we narrate that?", "We spoke about the fact that that Barbie essentially has this existential crisis and her whole life goes upside from that point on. How does this song become the turning point for the film that in a way narrates what’s coming next?"
 * Billboard (Mark interview)
 * The Guardian - "It wasn’t “marrying with what was happening on the screen: Margot Robbie in gold sequins, having the time of her life,” says Ronson. The lyrics were “a little more ambiguous”, adds Wyatt. So the duo went back to the drawing board – but they didn’t have long. The song was needed for the trailer and, in England – at Warner Bro’s Leavesden studios where Barbie was largely produced – choreography was already in progress. “We rewrote it twice,” says Ronson. After their punchy, arch first effort, the second felt “a little too anodised, like we had corrected too much”. Dance The Night came together at “the 11th hour”, says Ronson, with revisions needed to match the on-screen choreography. Then, days before it was due to be shipped for the trailer, they realised they had forgotten to replace the stopgap, synthesised instrumentation with the 80-piece orchestra they had recorded. “We did the strings the day before it went to mastering,” says Ronson.", read whole thing
 * LA Times - extremely important interview, read whole thing
 * Time - another important interview wtf, Ronson saw parallels between Barbie and the fall of disco
 * TLOBF - "Coming up with the instrumental that became “Dance the Night,” I felt pretty free to create. I wasn’t thinking, 'This has got to be the summer smash'. It was like, 'I’m really inspired by this film'. I wanted to give them something that’s got disco, but has an unexpected slightly harder edge to it.", ""We wrote the music and then she wrote the song with Caroline Ailin.", music video easter egg
 * Esquire - Urm, another important review, "We shoot the scene in two weeks and we need a big dance number"
 * NME - "Tastes Like Barbie", another Ronson interview
 * NPR - "every time I turn on the radio it's on — and it's a bop, it's a banger. I guess I thought maybe I was done, or maybe pop music was done with me. I get so excited by young producers and the sound of what's happening in pop, [but] any time I try to chase that, it doesn't work and it feels inauthentic. But when I sort of hone into the things that I love — like songcraft, arranging and those things — that's when I feel good about it."
 * Vanity Fair - important Lipa interview, consult in full, "Because writing for film isn’t something that I’ve done before, that was when I realized the power of possibly being able to write lyrics like a score"

Composition

 * Variety - "a slick, disco-pop number titled “Dance the Night.”, "Dua pulls retro-futuristic inspiration from her last record “Future Nostalgia” to craft the disco delight of “Dance the Night.” “Baby you can find me under the lights / Diamonds under my eyes,” Dua sings in the first few lines of the song"
 * Billboard - "unveiled the disco-tinged track", "“Watch me dance the night away / My heart could be burnin’ but you won’t see it on my face / Watch me dance, dance the night away / I still keep the party running,” she sings in the catchy chorus.", "the song’s gleaming, dance floor-ready beat."
 * RS - "the luscious disco single", "“Watch me, dance/Dance the night away/My heart could be burning but you won’t see it on my face,” Lipa sings with the confidence of a siren. “Watch me, dance/Dance the night away/I’ll still keep the party running not one hair out of place.”"
 * Consequence - "a pitch-perfect mixture of synth-pop and disco with “Dance the Night.”, "The song kicks off with dramatic strings before a beat drops that all but demands choreography"
 * American Songwriter - "a disco-pop track", "up-tempo anthem", "Watch me dance, dance the night away | My hеart could be burnin’, but you won’t see it on my face | Watch me dancе, dance the night away (Uh-huh) | I’ll still keep the party runnin’ | not one hair out of place, belts Dua Lipa. Lately, I been movin’ close to the edge | Still be lookin’ my best | I stay on the beat, you can count on me | I ain’t missin’ no steps."
 * Consequence - "“Dance the Night” is a shimmering disco number. “I stay on the beat, you can count on me/ I ain’t missing no steps,” the artist sings, as classic strings and funky bass soar."
 * iHeartRadio - "disco banger", ""Watch me dance, dance the night away/ My hеart could be burning but you won't see it on my face/ Watch me dancе, dance the night away/ I still keep the party running, not one hair out of place,"
 * GMA - "disco-pop tune"
 * Uproxx - "a shimmering pop hit primed to dominate airwaves all summer"
 * BPM - "the album’s finest foray into the concept of “Barbiecore: The Sound”. Its strings evoke pure glitter, and the popstar’s deep yet distinctively feminine voice perfectly accomplishes the goal of bringing emotional gravitas to pure plastic."
 * The Independent - "disco number"
 * MusicOMH - "Lead singles Dance The Night by Dua Lipa are fine examples of 2s, as breezy acoustic guitars and glitzy strings soundtrack the former’s movie-related lyrics about always looking perfect on the outside."
 * PopMatters - "sleek disco", "the singer recalls roller-disco dance", "The neo-disco of the track is more of an homage to the classic disco of Chic, Ashford & Simpson, and Hal Davis. The groovy tune is adorned with strings and bass and sounds like the classic disco of artists like Donna Summer or Gloria Gaynor."
 * AllMusic - "an appropriately dancefloor-friendly disco throwback bop, "Dance the Night," which topped charts across the planet"

Critical reception

 * Consequence - Song of the Week, "a legitimate contender for song of the summer", "a pitch-perfect mixture of synth-pop and disco with “Dance the Night.” This shimmering sonic space is where the pop star shines brightest: Similarly structured tracks on Lipa’s Future Nostalgia successfully worked its way into our playlists and hearts back in 2020, and this latest drop shows that this particular sparkle isn’t fading any time soon.", "She’s not here to play around, and neither was Dua Lipa when working on this track"
 * iHeartRadio - "she sings on the track, which wouldn't sound out of place on her last album Future Nostalgia."
 * Uproxx - "a shimmering pop hit primed to dominate airwaves all summer"
 * Harper's Bazaar - "Running along the same lines as her 2020 hit album, Future Nostalgia"
 * Pitchfork - "Dua Lipa’s “Dance the Night” is a serviceable Future Nostalgia retread that’s partially redeemed by its inclusion in an exuberant dance sequence, a suggestion that all of these songs would sound better under the magical thinking of Barbie Land. But this is the real world, and in the real world, these throwaway products should largely be left on the shelf."
 * BPM - "The first piece of music written for the Barbie movie and one of its main musical motifs, Dua Lipa’s “Dance The Night”, is the album’s finest foray into the concept of “Barbiecore: The Sound”. Its strings evoke pure glitter, and while it doesn’t reach the heights of Ronson and Dua Lipa’s previous collaboration “Electricity”, the popstar’s deep yet distinctively feminine voice perfectly accomplishes the goal of bringing emotional gravitas to pure plastic. It’s not what the rest of the album sounds like, but it is a great microcosm of the feeling that surrounds the Barbie movie."
 * The Independent - "Unusually, the bigger names on Barbie: The Album are the most underwhelming. Dua Lipa’s disco number “Dance the Night” is a flat imitation of far better tracks on her Future Nostalgia record"
 * NME - "But there are also plenty of disappointments, especially from the heavyweight contributors", "Dua Lipa’s ‘Dance The Night Away’ is merely ‘Future Nostalgia’ cutting room material"
 * MusicOMH - "Competent efforts to shoehorn an artist’s style into the Barbie mould, which serve mostly as curios for fans of the artist in question", "Lead singles Dance The Night by Dua Lipa are fine examples of 2s"
 * PopMatters - "the sleek disco “Dance the Night” by Dua Lipa, is a canny subverting of expectations. Instead of complying with the eye-meltingly bright bubblegum-pop, the singer recalls roller-disco dance with her contribution. The neo-disco of the track is more of an homage to the classic disco of Chic, Ashford & Simpson, and Hal Davis. The groovy tune is adorned with strings and bass and sounds like the classic disco of artists like Donna Summer or Gloria Gaynor."
 * Paste - "Dua Lipa’s lead single “Dance the Night” is already embedded in the Barbie canon (and its music video has racked up 51-million views in just a month’s time), serving as the sultry backdrop to the film’s main trailer. It’s a shimmying number that could rival any selection from Future Nostalgia, Dua’s immaculate collection of disco-inspired pop from 2020"
 * The Guardian - "For all the Midas touch he exhibits on Dua Lipa’s Dance the Night, Ronson the songwriter lacks a requisite sprinkling of saccharine camp for a job like this"
 * The Guardian - "Dance The Night is similarly commanding: a shimmery slice of disco-pop, with the stylish orchestration and attention to detail that has made Ronson so in-demand as a producer"
 * RS - "Dua Lipa’s disco track “Dance the Night” exudes Future Nostalgia"

Music video

 * RS - "Lipa’s accompanying music video is as much glitter and glam as it is escapism and unease. She thinks of her tears as diamonds, instead of an emotional response to anything threatening her perfect life. Instead of confronting failed romances and her burning heart, she puts on the hottest dress in her closet and dances it off while flanked by life-sized perfume bottles."
 * Variety - "a playful, and perfectly pink, music video featuring clips of the movie and a cameo from director Greta Gerwig.", "In the matching music video, Dua shows up on set and is shocked to see the giant disco ball that Gerwig ordered for the video has been accidentally destroyed.", "She powers through the choreography — at one point dancing atop a giant Barbie heel — as the video cuts to scenes of the film’s own disco party with Margot Robbie, Issa Rae and others. Gerwig appears at the end, emerging from her director’s chair to compliment Dua’s performance and question the whereabouts of the broken disco ball."
 * Pitchfork - "it arrives with a very pink music video featuring a cameo from Gerwig at the very end. Watch Lipa lead a troupe of dancing disco balls, get behind the wheel of a Barbie-pink convertible, and dance on a hot pink stage"
 * Vulture - "I mean, I’ve heard some of it and it’s incredible. I think that’s why there’s the disco ball that smashes in the video, right? This feels like her triumphant stomp on that era of her music into whatever she does next."
 * Vulture - "In the music video, Lipa is such a good dancer that she's able to pick up new choreography right when she gets to the sparkly, pink set. She continues to perform despite the fact that a disco ball has crashed to the floor. “Even when the tears are flowing like diamonds on my face / I still keep the party going, not one hair out of place,” she sings. Director Greta Gerwig makes a cameo, and we also get quick glimpses of Margot Robbie, Issa Rae, and Emma Mackey (who are all playing Barbies) dancing."
 * Consequence - "thankfully, a playful, sleek routine is delivered during the chorus in accompanying music video, interspersed with clips from a dance number promised in the film.", "the pink, disco-toned music video features a cameo from Gerwig herself."
 * The Independent - "a music video featuring a cameo from director Greta Gerwig", "The video sees Lipa preparing to film a music video and learning choreography for the number, when a giant disco ball falls from the ceiling.", "The words: “This Barbie is making a music video” then flash on the screen as the video begins, with the various Barbies also making an appearance. At the end of the video, director Gerwig emerges from a chair with her name on it. “Where’s that giant disco ball?” she asks. “We need to find it to do the next one.”"
 * American Songwriter - "The pretty pink and playful clip finds the pop sensation getting ready for a disco. In true Barbie fashion, the singer had a handful of outfits to choose from, before hitting the dance floor. Gerwig makes a cameo towards the end of the clip when she jumps out of her director’s chair to praise Dua Lipa’s dance routine."
 * Consequence - "Even its music video fits into the Barbie Land, with Lipa dancing on top of a feathery high heel and Gerwig herself making a cameo at the end."
 * EW - "It arrives with a very pink, very shimmery music video complete with a cameo from Barbie writer, director, and executive producer Greta Gerwig. In the music video, the singer sashays through tricked-out sets under sparkling disco balls in looks fit for the flick's titular iconic doll. We also get a sneak peek at the movie's dance scene."
 * GMA - "an equally playful music video, which follows Lipa as she arrives on set to film.", "The visuals ooze the famed Barbie pink color, from the convertible she drives, to the outfits she wears. The film's director, Greta Gerwig, even makes a cameo at the very end."
 * Cosmopolitan - "thing we can't over? Her slay fits in the 'Dance The Night' video. The fit in question comprised of a pink, sparkle, cross-strap, halter neck top with keyhole cutout, and contrasting ice blue sparkle mini skirt with thigh split and butterfly embellishment as well as high-shine metallic stiletto boots. She topped the look off with chunky gold costume jewellery in the form of earrings, a choker, rings and bracelets and a super high ponytail, as well as dramatic metallic makeup. The video heavily features items from Dua Lipa's La Vacanza Versace collab, which embraces the heady glamour of summer and party season - and it's very much helping us get in the spirit."
 * Uproxx - " a predictably dance-heavy video"
 * NME - "a Barbie-inspired music video, which sees the pop star strut around the hot-pink film sets. It also features a cameo from the film’s writer, director and executive producer, Greta Gerwig. The video also sees the ‘Levitating’ singer showcase multiple pieces from her new clothing collection, designed in collaboration with fashion icon Donatella Versace, ‘La Vacanza’"
 * Harper's Bazaar - "Since its release just a couple of hours ago, the music video already has almost one million views. Through a melange of glitter and pink Dua is seen embracing her Barbiecore side; everything about this video — from the set, to the outfits, and even the Margot Robbie and Greta Gerwig cameos — has us eagerly waiting for the film’s debut. Dua donned two fabulous outfits in the video, reminding us of why she is a style icon."
 * NME - "The new track arrived last week with a Barbie-inspired music video, and also featured a cameo from the writer, director and executive producer Gerwig. The ‘Levitating’ singer also showcased multiple pieces from her new clothing collection, designed in collaboration with fashion icon Donatella Versace, ‘La Vacanza’."