Not even a week after Nicki Minaj and Ice Spice took over the Genius charts with their banger ”Barbie World,” Charli XCX has returned to share another new single off the highly anticipated Barbie film’s soundtrack. It’s called ”Speed Drive,” and it follows Barbie singles like Dua Lipa’s ”Dance The Night,” which currently sits at No. 32 on the Billboard Hot 100, and PinkPantheress’ ”Angel.”
Produced by EASYFUN. ”Speed Drive” is a fast-paced electro-pop tune about cruising around town in a flashy car with your best friends. ”I’ve always really liked singing about cars,” Charli explained in an interview with Rolling Stone. ”For me, there is this intrinsic link between driving and music and feeling like you’re a star when you’re in a car … [I wanted “Speed Drive” to] feel quite bratty [and] about just being hot.”
On the first verse, Charli makes sure to bring a Pinterest-worthy friend ”dressed in really cute clothes” along for the ride. This girl’s got a shining smile like model, influencer, and phone case designer Devon Lee Carlson. Before this song even dropped, Carlson revealed that she would be name-checked by Charli on the song by sharing screenshots of her texts with the pop singer.
Devon Lee smile, teeth a white row
Got a classic, real deep, Van Gogh
She got loyalty, she says, ”I love you, girl”
I love her more
On the hook, Chari flips some lines from Toni Basil’s ’80s classic ”Hey Mickey,” but she makes sure to updates the lyrics to pay homage to the film this song was made for.
Ah-ah, Barbie, you’re so fine, you’re so fine you blow my mind
Jump into the driver’s seat and put it into speed drive
Charli’s joyride attracts some glares on the second verse, but she’s certainly not bothered.
Got the top down, tires on fire
Who are you? I’m livin’ my life
See you lookin’ with that side eye
Wow, you’re so jealous ’cause I’m one of a kind
The full Barbie soundtrack will arrive on July 21—the same day the movie hits theaters—and will feature new songs from Lizzo, Tame Impala, and The Kid LAROI, to name a few.
You can read all the lyrics to ”Speed Drive” on Genius now.
