Ice cream, you scream: The scoop on Blackpink’s newest collab

September 9, 2020

| By Emma Chen

Last weekend was the hottest weekend of Los Angeles in the past 20 years as an ice cream truck drove by, followed by children with cash in their hands. This was the scene viewers of BLACKPINK’s new music video were greeted by.The song “Ice Cream” by the Korean girl band BLACKPINK and American singer Selena Gomez is a mixture of summer vibes, 1950’s pin-up style and a bit of flirtation in the lyrics. The theme of the song is comparing the girlish personalities to the tempting ice cream, cool on the outside but sweet and soft inside.

The music video was released on August 28, and the song has reached 40 million views within 9 hours after being released. Before the song is released, BLACKPINK posted an image of a question mark accompanied by the word “featuring” on Instagram.

Undoubtedly, the mysterious collaborator raised the curiosity of Blinks and the fans of the possible candidates. Based on the blushy pink, other than Gomez, many fans suspected Ariana Grande to be featuring with BLACKPINK in “Ice Cream.” Both fandoms had high anticipation on whether it is going to be #Aripink or #Selpink. In the end, it is a dream that came true for supporters for #Selpink. Nonetheless, Ariana Grande was one of the songwriters for “Ice Cream.”

The blending of K-pop with Western artists isn’t the first, many collaborations from the past had minimal involvement of Western artists. However, the performance of Gomez in “Ice Cream” with BLACKPINK was wonderful, even dominating. The whole song is in English, only Lisa’s rap is in Korean, making it more like Selena Gomez featuring BLACKPINK.

Different from their usual style with sultry, fierce and independent women, in “Ice Cream” BLACKPINK presented their fans with a new appeal. The multicolor, floral dresses and eye-catching make-up really created a light-hearted and playful experience. For sure, the outfits in the music video will definitely set a new trend of the saccharine style.

From a scale of 1 to 10, “Ice Cream” would be a solid 8. Because of COVID-19, BLACKPINK and Gomez filmed their parts separately, without direct interactions, which is the music video’s greatest downfall.

Overall, this alliance of BLACKPINK and Western artists is a big step for entering the national market. With the sweet and chill effect, this might be your last song added to your summer playlist before it ends.