Childish Gambino dances into Playground on Pixel

Playground gives you the power to create and play through your Pixel camera using augmented reality. You can bring your photos and videos to life by adding interactive characters called Playmoji to what’s around you, and now there’s a new Playmoji inspired by recording artist Childish Gambino. You can add him to your photos or videos by simply pointing your camera and dropping him into the scene.

We worked closely with Childish Gambino and his music video choreographer, Sherrie Silver, to make sure the Playmoji’s dance moves rival those of Childish Gambino himself. By using ARCore’s motion tracking, light estimation, and ability to understand the real world, his Playmoji looks and feels lifelike, whether he’s in front of you or in a selfie next to you. He even reacts to your facial expressions in real time thanks to machine learning—try smiling or frowning in selfie mode and see how he responds.

The Childish Gambino Playmoji pack features unique moves that map to three different songs: “Redbone,” “Summertime Magic,” and “This is America.” Pixel users can start playing with them today using the camera on their Pixel, Pixel XL, Pixel 2, Pixel 2 XL, Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL.

Think you have moves too? We want to bring you in on the fun so we're inviting #teampixel to a dance challenge. When you use the Childish Gambino Playmoji, bust out your best dance moves alongside him. The #pixeldanceoff is on—get moving!