Shania Twain talks about why she was flattered to have a ‘Man! I’m a Woman!’ commemorative doll in her honor, and making her own Barbies as a child.
Man — she feels like a Barbie. And is one, officially, now: Shania Twain has had a one-of-a-kind Barbie made in her likeness by Mattel. The singer joins Viola Davis, Helen Mirren, Kylie Minogue and several other renowned entertainers or activists who are getting their own signature dolls as part of Mattel’s celebration of International Woman’s Day March 8.
To get one thing out of the way right away: These dolls are one-offs, so you will not be able to go to the store and get your own Shania or Kylie or Viola or Helen doll. (Nor one representing Mexican filmmaker Lila Avilés, Brazilian content creator Maira Gomez, Japanese model Nicole Fujita or German comedian and activist Enissa Amani, the other international celebrities who have had singular Barbies made in their honor.)
Realizing that there would be no way to personally own a “Man! I Feel Like a Woman!” Barbie came as crushing news at the very beginning of our conversation with Twain, but we composed ourselves and carried on in a Zoom call to discuss what Barbie means to Shania. (Beyond the International Woman’s Day tie-in, the Barbie brand is also celebrating its 65th anniversary with a Barbie Dream Gap Project partnership with Inspiring Girls International.)
When they contacted you and wanted to make a Barbie of you, were you saying, “Well, of course — what took you so long?” Or did you have questions?
I was honored and flattered because what this particular Barbie is representing is what I try to represent. It’s a playful world. I take being a role model seriously, without taking myself too seriously. I mean, I use a sense of humor in all of my songwriting, and I try to be myself, which is a playful person, but still saying what I need to say. And some of the things are quite bold, that I say as a woman. And I enjoy inspiring others. It’s part of my pleasure of being an artist. So this Barbie represents empowering girls to dream and imagine beyond what they may think is possible. Because the imagination is a free space where they can explore their own recognition of self-potential.
This Barbie includes the iconic “Man! I Feel Like a Woman!” outfit, but has the pink hair we saw you sporting when you played the Hollywood Bowl last year, which is interesting.
