Mark Ronson believes the song he co-wrote for the Barbie movie, I’m Just Ken, has helped young boys cope with rejection.
Ronson penned the track, which is sung by Ryan Gosling’s Ken character in the film, with fellow musician Andrew Wyatt.
Ronson believes its lyrics, which refer to Ken dealing with his unrequited love for Margot Robbie’s Barbie, have had an effect in the real world.
“I know I’ll sound like David Brent, but the song helped young boys,” he tells British newspaper The Times. “My friend’s eight-year-old got broken up with and he said, ‘It’s OK, because Ken got broken up with by Barbie.’ The song tells boys that it’s OK to be runner-up. The internet’s caused a level of isolation in boys and this idea of male camaraderie and sharing your feelings is a nice and unexpected thing to come out of it.”
Ronson and Gosling are set to perform the song at the Oscars on Sunday night – but he reiterated previous comments by director Greta Gerwig, saying that I’m Just Ken was almost cut from the film.
“At that first screening the song wasn’t working,” he explains. “I panicked. The humour wasn’t translating and Greta had to fight. The studio asked her how much she really needed it and she said, ‘With every inch of my body.’ And then there was a big swing.”
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