Hey girl, it’s almost Christmas. And Ryan Gosling has a present for you: A Christmas version of “I’m Just Ken.”
The “Barbie” actor and music producer, songwriter and composer Mark Ronson on Wednesday released “Ken the EP,” a collection of three new versions of the earworm “I’m Just Ken” from the film. And to really ring in the holiday spirit, Gosling and Ronson teamed up for a tongue-in-cheek music video for one of the tracks, “I’m Just Ken (Merry Kristmas Barbie).”
The music video sees Gosling tossing off his heavily meme’d “hey girl” while surrounded by musicians and Christmas lights, after which he belts out the Christmas-themed version of the track which, in this writer’s estimation, is a bona fide bop.
The other tracks on the EP are an acoustic cover called “I’m Just Ken (In My Feelings Acoustic)” and a dance cover called “I’m Just Ken (Purple Disco Machine Remix).”
The EP comes out as “Barbie” is in the running for a number of Oscars, including multiple shots at Best Original Song. There’s “I’m Just Ken,” of course, but also Dua Lipa’s “Dance the Night” and Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?”
The music video is further proof that yes, that’s really Gosling singing in the movie. The actor even had his own band, Dead Man’s Bones, back in 2009.
“Barbie” was the highest-grossing film of 2023 with a whopping $1.4 billion at the worldwide box office as Greta Gerwig’s pink-infused vision struck a chord with audiences around the globe. And critics too — it’s one of the best-reviewed films of the year and a contender in all the major Oscar categories, including Best Picture, Director, Screenplay, Actress and yes, Supporting Actor for Gosling.
