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Halfway by way of Stevie Nicks’s live performance at Madison Sq. Backyard on Sunday night time, the musician informed the viewers that she had a “shock,” prompting hypothesis amongst viewers members a couple of potential sudden visitor: May it’s Lindsey Buckingham?
It turned out that the particular visitor was a Barbie made to appear like Nicks, and its musical skills had been restricted to a tiny ribboned tambourine.
Mattel, the producer of Barbie, formally unveiled the Stevie Nicks doll at midnight on Sunday, the newest addition to the world of Barbie tributes to musicians, together with Tina Turner, David Bowie and Celia Cruz.
(Chances are you’ll be considering, that’s a variety of Barbie this 12 months, and you’re proper. The viewers at Madison Sq. Backyard didn’t appear to thoughts.)
Bradley Justice, a doll historian and proprietor of the Swell Doll Store, which focuses on vintage and classic dolls, mentioned that Mattel has been making movie star dolls for the reason that Sixties.
“I see it as form of a crossover branding, the place you entice somebody who beforehand could haven’t had an curiosity in any respect within the doll or the model,” he mentioned, “however abruptly could be very excited to see their favourite singer or film star or no matter immortalized in 11 and a half inches.”
The Nicks doll’s outfit, in addition to a pair of Pasquale Di Fabrizio black platform boots, was impressed by her look on the quilt of Fleetwood Mac’s 1977 album “Rumours.”
On the live performance, Nicks defined that she despatched the album cowl outfit, which she nonetheless had many years later, to Mattel to seize that point in her life. To roaring cheers, Nicks started to talk in a high-pitched Barbie voice, explaining how a lot the doll meant to her.
Nicks wrote on X, the social media platform previously often known as Twitter, that when she regarded on the doll, she noticed herself at 27.
“All of the recollections of strolling out on a giant stage in that black outfit and people beautiful boots come dashing again,” Nicks mentioned, “after which I see myself now in her face.”
On the live performance, Nicks additionally selected a fan within the entrance rows to take one doll residence and promptly started to serenade the girl, named Sara, with the monitor bearing her identify from the album “Tusk.”
The doll went on sale hours later for $55, and preorders bought out virtually instantly.
Mr. Justice mentioned that it was regular for the movie star Barbie dolls to promote out rapidly. “Once you hear it’s coming, it is advisable to simply go forward and begin limbering up your fingers in your keyboard to kind in your bank card quantity,” he mentioned.
Mr. Justice mentioned that one of many first movie star Barbie dolls, launched in 1969, depicted Diahann Carroll because the star of “Julia,” the primary American tv collection to chronicle the lifetime of a Black skilled girl.
Extra not too long ago, Mattel launched a doll of Celia Cruz, the Cuban American singer who was often known as the Queen of Salsa. The Cruz doll, wearing a pink lace mermaid costume, was unveiled in 2021 however solely went on sale this 12 months.
Carlyle Nuera, who designed that doll, mentioned on Instagram that the design crew had gone backwards and forwards “with the material vendor to get the fitting scale of the lace design and to maximise the gold metallic threads woven all through.”
A Tina Turner doll that was launched in October 2022 has bought out in shops, however it’s out there on eBay for a whole lot, and typically 1000’s, of {dollars}.
That doll depicts Turner within the outfit she wore within the music video for “What’s Love Received to Do With It.”
Turner, who died in Might, was very concerned along with her doll’s design course of, Invoice Greening, a Mattel designer, mentioned in a information launch. Mr. Greening defined that the design crew studied Turner’s hair “in any respect angles” to seize her look. “Plenty of teasing and hair spray was concerned!” he mentioned.
David Bowie has been commemorated with two Barbie dolls wearing tribute to 2 of his well-known appears.
Linda Kyaw-Merschon, who led the design of the second doll, which was launched final 12 months, mentioned that it was meant to be a Barbie as Bowie, “not Bowie precisely as himself.”
The doll was wearing a duplicate of the powder blue go well with Bowie wore within the “Life on Mars?” music video.
The sooner Bowie doll, launched in 2019, dressed as Bowie’s alter ego, Ziggy Stardust, wore a metallic pink and blue striped get-up with siren-red platform boots and a gold circle on her brow.
The Stevie Nicks doll was launched after a giant 12 months for Barbie. The Barbie film launched in July made greater than $1 billion in ticket gross sales on the world field workplace in just a few weeks, in response to Warner Bros., and has created a windfall for Mattel.
Nicks informed USA Right now that she beloved the film and mentioned “I needed to come residence and inform my Stevie doll all about it.”
Melina Delkic contributed reporting from Madison Sq. Backyard.
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