"Down in New Orleans" is a song from

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

's 2009 animated film ''

The Princess and the Frog ''The Princess and the Frog'' is a 2009 American animated musical fantasy romantic comedy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The 49th Disney animated feature film, it is loosely based on the ...

'', written by Randy Newman. Several versions of the song were recorded for use in different parts of the film and other materials. The song was nominated for

Best Original Song This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

at the

82nd Academy Awards The 82nd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2009 and took place on March 7, 2010, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p.m ...

but lost to " The Weary Kind" from ''

Crazy Heart ''Crazy Heart'' is a 2009 American drama film, written and directed by Scott Cooper, in his feature directorial debut. Based on the 1987 novel of the same name by Thomas Cobb, the film centers on a down-and-out country music singer-songwriter ( ...

''. The full version of the song appears at the title sequence in the film, performed by

Dr. John Malcolm John Rebennack Jr. (November 20, 1941 – June 6, 2019), better known by his stage name Dr. John, was an American singer and songwriter. His music encompassed New Orleans blues, jazz, funk, and R&B. Active as a session musician from ...

. The song introduces the city of

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

and foreshadows the manipulations of Dr. Facilier, the film's main villain. This is the first full song in the movie and the only one during the film not sung by one of the characters (

Ne-Yo Shaffer Chimere Smith (born October 18, 1979), known professionally as Ne-Yo, is an American singer, songwriter, actor, dancer, and record producer. He gained fame for his songwriting abilities when he penned Mario's 2004 hit " Let Me Love You ...

's " Never Knew I Needed" appears only over the closing credits). Tiana sings both a prologue to the song at the opening of the film, and a shorter version of the song as a finale at its end.

Anika Noni Rose Anika Noni Rose (born September 6, 1972) is an American actress and singer. She is best known for voicing Tiana, Disney's first African-American princess, as seen in ''The Princess and the Frog'' (2009). She was named a Disney Legend in 2011. ...

, the voice of Tiana, also performed the song in full for ''The Princess and the Frog: Tiana and her Princess Friends'' along with songs by other Disney Princesses, including " Happy Working Song", another Academy Award-nominated song. A year before the film came out in theatres, Randy Newman himself performed the song at the 2008

New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival (commonly called Jazz Fest or Jazzfest) is an annual celebration of local music and culture held at the Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans, Louisiana. Jazz Fest attracts thousands of visitors to New ...

. The song was nominated for Best Song at the

53rd Grammy Awards The 53rd Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 13, 2011, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. They were broadcast on CBS with a rating of 26.6 million viewers. Barbra Streisand was honored as the MusiCares Person of the Year two nights pri ...

; in this category and the Academy Award it lost to "The Weary Kind". " Almost There", another song from the film, performed by Tiana (

), was also nominated for the Oscar.

References

External links

* (on Disney's official channel) {{authority control 2008 songs Songs about New Orleans Dr. John songs Songs from The Princess and the Frog Songs written by Randy Newman Walt Disney Records singles