The 2011
animated
Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby image, still images are manipulated to create Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on cel, transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and e ...
musical
Musical is the adjective of music.
Musical may also refer to:
* Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance
* Musical film
Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...
adventure
An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...
comedy film
The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...
''of the same name'', produced by
Blue Sky Studios
Blue Sky Studios, Inc. was an American visual effects and computer animation animation studio, studio, which was active from 1987 to 2021. It was based in Greenwich, Connecticut, and was founded on February 22, 1987, by Chris Wedge, Michael F ...
and
20th Century Fox Animation
20th Century Animation, Inc. (previously known as Fox Family Films, Fox Animation Studios, and 20th Century Fox Animation and sometimes referred to as Fox Animation) is an American animation studio located in Century City, Los Angeles. Formed ...
, and directed by
Carlos Saldanha
Carlos Saldanha (; born 24 January 1965) is a Brazilian animator, director, producer, and voice actor of animated films who worked with Blue Sky Studios until its closure in 2021. He was the director of ''Ice Age: The Meltdown'' (2006), ''Ice Ag ...
, featured two albums released for the film: an original soundtrack and an original score.
Interscope Records
Interscope Records is an American record label based in Santa Monica, California, owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture ...
released the film's soundtrack ''Rio (Music from the Motion Picture)'' on April 5, 2011 in digital formats, and a physical release on April 12.
The album produced by the film's composer
John Powell, and Brazilian musician
Sérgio Mendes
Sérgio Santos Mendes (; 11 February 1941 – 5 September 2024) was a Brazilian musician.
His career took off with worldwide hits by his band Brasil '66. He released 35 albums and was known for playing bossa nova, often mixed with funk. He ...
, featured collaborations from Brazilian and American artists, along with songs performed by the film's cast members. The music received critical acclaim from critics, praising the Brazilian influences in the music and creative choices of involving the native musicians to influence South American culture. Powell's score was a separate album, titled ''Rio (Original Motion Picture Score)'', which was released by
Varèse Sarabande
Varèse Sarabande is an American record label, owned by Concord Music Group and distributed by Universal Music Group, which specializes in film scores and cast recording, original cast recordings. It aims to reissue rare or unavailable albums, as ...
on April 19, 2011.
Soundtrack album
The soundtrack takes inspiration from
Brazilian music
The music of Brazil encompasses various regional musical styles influenced by European, American, African and Amerindian forms. Brazilian music developed some unique and original styles such as forró, repente, coco de roda, axé, sertanejo ...
, and several songs under various genres were written and produced.
Brazilian musician
Sérgio Mendes
Sérgio Santos Mendes (; 11 February 1941 – 5 September 2024) was a Brazilian musician.
His career took off with worldwide hits by his band Brasil '66. He released 35 albums and was known for playing bossa nova, often mixed with funk. He ...
contributed to the soundtrack, as an executive producer with John Powell. On March 13, 2011, during his performance at the
Geffen Playhouse
The Geffen Playhouse is a not-for-profit theater company founded in Los Angeles, California by Gilbert Cates in 1995.
It produces plays in two theaters in Geffen Playhouse, which is owned by University of California Los Angeles. The Playhous ...
in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, Mendes revealed the official soundtrack list, and also announced that he would re-record the classical Brazilian song "
Mas que Nada" for the film and album.
Stating his involvement in the project, Mendes said that "The film is such a celebration of Brazilian life, of Carnival, the nature, the rhythms, the joy, the sensuality. It’s nicely timed with my record."
The album featured performances from the film's cast,
Jesse Eisenberg
Jesse Adam Eisenberg ( ; born October 5, 1983) is an American actor, filmmaker, and playwright. Recognized for playing smart but awkward characters in both comedies and dramas, his accolades include a British Academy Film Award and nominati ...
,
Anne Hathaway
Anne Jacqueline Hathaway (born November 12, 1982) is an American actress. List of awards and nominations received by Anne Hathaway, Her accolades include an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime ...
,
Jamie Foxx
Eric Marlon Bishop (born December 13, 1967), known professionally as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, comedian, and singer. Known for his work in both the screen and music industries, his accolades include an Academy Award, a Grammy Award ...
, along with rapper-singer
will.i.am
William James Adams Jr. (born March 15, 1975), known professionally as will.i.am (pronounced "will I am"), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor. He is the frontman of the musical group Black Eyed Peas, which he ...
(also featuring in the film's cast), and contributions from Brazilian artists
Carlinhos Brown
Antônio Carlos Santos de Freitas, known professionally as Carlinhos Brown (Brazilian Portuguese: /kaʁˈlĩɲus bɾaw̃, -iɲuʃ/, 23 November 1962), is a Brazilian singer, percussionist, and record producer from Salvador, Bahia. His musica ...
, Mikael Mutti,
Gracinha Leporace
Gracinha Leporace (born Maria da Graça Leporace; 20 January 1950) is a Brazilian singer who worked extensively with her late husband Sérgio Mendes and his band.
Leporace was born in Ipanema, Rio de Janeiro. She has a sister, Marianna Leporac ...
,
Bebel Gilberto
Isabel Buarque de Hollanda Gilberto de Oliveira (born May 12, 1966), known as Bebel Gilberto, is an American-born Brazilian people, Brazilian popular singer often associated with bossa nova. She is the daughter of João Gilberto and singer Miú ...
, American artists
Siedah Garrett
Deborah Christine "Siedah" Garrett (born June 24, 1960) is an American singer and songwriter who has written songs and performed backing vocals for many recording artists in the music industry, such as Michael Jackson, the Pointer Sisters, Brand ...
,
Ester Dean
Esther Renay Dean (born April 15, 1982), known professionally as Ester Dean, is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. She rose to prominence as a pop songwriter in the late 2000s and wrote numerous hit songs for singers including R ...
and British singer-songwriter
Taio Cruz
Adetayo Ayowale Onile-Ere (born 23 April 1980), known professionally as Jacob Taio Cruz ( ), is an English singer-songwriter, rapper, and record producer.
Cruz was discovered in the mid-2000s by American record producer Tricky Stewart, joinin ...
performing.
Release
On March 18, 2011,
Brazilian-English singer-songwriter
Taio Cruz
Adetayo Ayowale Onile-Ere (born 23 April 1980), known professionally as Jacob Taio Cruz ( ), is an English singer-songwriter, rapper, and record producer.
Cruz was discovered in the mid-2000s by American record producer Tricky Stewart, joinin ...
released a music video and theme song named "
Telling the World
"Telling the World" is a song by English singer-songwriter Taio Cruz, released as the seventh overall single and first single from the second re-release of his second studio album, ''Rokstarr''. The song also appears on his third album ''TY.O'', ...
" on YouTube for the soundtrack.
The single was later released for digital download on March 20.
The soundtrack was digitally released by
Interscope Records
Interscope Records is an American record label based in Santa Monica, California, owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture ...
on April 5,
and was distributed in physical CD formats, the following week (April 12).
will.i.am performed a remix of the track "
Drop It Low", to celebrate the film's release and uploaded it on YouTube on April 11, 2011.
Track listing
Standard
International version
Brazilian version
In the Brazilian edition some songs gained a
Portuguese version performed by famous Brazilian artists such as
Ivete Sangalo
Ivete Maria Dias de Sangalo Cady (; Dias de Sangalo; born 27 May 1972) is a Brazilian singer, actress, and television personality. Referred to as the "Queen of Brazil", her contributions to music have made her one of the most celebrated entert ...
(replacing Ester Dean in "Take You to Rio (Remix)") and
Carlinhos Brown
Antônio Carlos Santos de Freitas, known professionally as Carlinhos Brown (Brazilian Portuguese: /kaʁˈlĩɲus bɾaw̃, -iɲuʃ/, 23 November 1962), is a Brazilian singer, percussionist, and record producer from Salvador, Bahia. His musica ...
(replacing Jamie Foxx in "Fly Love"). "Real in Rio" became "Favo de Mel" (Honeycomb) but it was performed by the same artists as the English version.
Reception
Reviewing the soundtrack, Jason Newman of ''
MTV
MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
'' wrote "The toe-tapping, easily digestible rhythms inherent in so much classic Brazilian music dovetails nicely with a movie geared toward children. But since kids don't spend money, we also get Taio Cruz and will.i.am to ensure that those precious commercial demographics are hit. It's a win for 20th Century Fox; a half-win for the rest of us." Matt Collar of ''
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
'' wrote "Rio is a sunny, dance-oriented album well suited to the film's South American setting."
Charts
Accolades
At the
39th Annie Awards
The 39th Annual Annie Awards honoring the best in animation of 2011 were held on February 4, 2012, at Royce Hall in Los Angeles, California.
Production nominees
Nominations announced on December 5, 2011
Best Animated Feature
'' Rango'' - Param ...
, the music received a nomination for
Best Music in a Feature Production but lost to
John Williams
John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (November 15, 2022)Classic Connection review, ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who w ...
for ''
The Adventures of Tintin
''The Adventures of Tintin'' ( ) is a series of 24 comic albums created by Belgians, Belgian cartoonist Georges Remi, who wrote under the pen name Hergé. The series was one of the most popular European comics of the 20th century. By 2007, a c ...
''.
The song "Real in Rio" was nominated for
Best Original Song at the
84th Academy Awards
The 84th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2011 in the United States and took place on February 26, 2012, at the Hollywood and Highland Center Theatre in H ...
, but lost to the other nominee ''
Man or Muppet
"Man or Muppet" is a song from Walt Disney Pictures' 2011 musical comedy film ''The Muppets'', written by singer-songwriter Bret McKenzie. Performed by the film's main characters, Gary (Jason Segel) and Walter (Peter Linz), the song also features ...
'' from ''
The Muppets
The Muppets are an American ensemble cast of puppet characters known for an surreal humor, absurdist, slapstick, burlesque, and self-referential humor, self-referential style of Musical theatre, musical Variety show, variety-sketch comedy. Cre ...
''.
Personnel
Credits adapted from CD liner notes.
* Producer – John Powell, Sergio Mendes
* Programming – Beth Caucci, Michael John Mollo, Paul Mounsey, Victor Chaga
* Arrangements – Beth Caucci, Michael John Mollo, Paul Mounsey, Victor Chaga, John Powell
* Recording – Bill Schnee, Marc Viner, Shawn Murphy, Aubry "Big Juice" Delaine, Padraic "Padlock" Kerin, will.i.am, Matt Shane, Mikkel Storleer Eriksen, Miles Walker, Tim Lauber, Erik Swanson
* Music editor – Tom Carlson
* Score editor – David Channing
* Engineer – Denis St. Amand, Adam Kagan, Juliette Amoroso, Damien Lewis
* Mixing – Brad Haehnel, Shawn Murphy, Bill Schnee, Greg Hayes, John Traunwieser, Marc Viner, Matt Ward, Dyland "3D" Dresdow, Phil Tan, Didiê Cunha
* Mastering – Fernando Lee, Stephen Marsh
* Music co-ordinator – Germaine Franco
* Music preparation – Joann Kane Music Service, Mark Graham
* Musical Assistance – Devin Kelly, Eric Wegener, Erin McAnally, Grace Lai, Jacob Merryman
; Instruments
* Bass – Nico Abondolo, René Camacho
* Flute – Pedro Eustache
* Guitar – George Doering, Jemaine Clement, Kleber Jorge, Mikael Mutti
* Percussion – Alberto Lopez, Antonio DeSantanna, Carlos A.S. De Oliveira, Davi Vieira, Jose "Ce Bruno" Eisenberg, Jose Jesus, Leonardo Costa, Luis Claudio Candido, Marco "Gibi" Dos Santos, Mikael Mutti, Nailton "Meia Noite" Dos Santos, Wagner Profeta Santos, Carlinhos Brown
* Whistle – Carlinhos Brown, John Powell, Mikael Mutti
; Orchestra
* Orchestration – Andrew Kinney, Ben Wallfisch=, Dave Metzger, Germaine Franco, John Ashton Thomas, Jon Kull, Randy Kerber, Rick Giovinazzo
* MIDI orchestration – Beth Caucci, Michael John Mollo, Paul Mounsey, Victor Chaga
* Concertmaster – Bruce Dukov
* Score conductor – Pete Anthony
* Score contractor – Gina Zimmitti
* Vocal contractor – Edie Lehmann Boddicker
* Stage manager – Greg Dennen, Tom Steel
; Management
* Business affairs (Interscope Records) – Jason Kawejsza, Rand Hoffman
* Business affairs (Twentieth Century Fox) – Tom Cavanaugh
* Director of international marketing – Tomoko Itoki
* Executive in charge of music (Interscope Records) – Tony Seyler
* Executive in charge of music (Twentieth Century Fox) – Robert Kraft
* Head of international marketing – Jurgen Grebner
* Marketing (Interscope Records) – Julie Hovsepian
* Music clearance – Ellen Ginsburg
* Soundtrack executive producer (Twentieth Century Fox) – Andrew Van Meter
* Music production supervisor (Twentieth Century Fox) – Rebecca Morellato
* Music supervisor (Twentieth Century Fox) – Danielle Diego
* Music co-ordinator (Twentieth Century Fox) – Johnny Choi
; Artwork
* Art direction – Dina Hovsepian
* Graphics – David Dibble, Jason Sadler, Tom Cardone
* Illustration – Marcella Bingham
Original score
As with previous
Blue Sky's productions,
John Powell composed the film's original score,
which was released into a separate album on April 19, 2011, by
Varèse Sarabande
Varèse Sarabande is an American record label, owned by Concord Music Group and distributed by Universal Music Group, which specializes in film scores and cast recording, original cast recordings. It aims to reissue rare or unavailable albums, as ...
.
Track listing
Reception
''
Filmtracks.com'' wrote "After Powell's stunning success with ''
How to Train Your Dragon
''How to Train Your Dragon'' is a media franchise from DreamWorks Animation and loosely based on the book series How to Train Your Dragon (novel series), of the same name by British author Cressida Cowell. It consists of three feature films: '' ...
'', his scores will inevitably be compared to that benchmark, and while ''Rio'' exhibits the same talent in its ranks, the 2011 score lacks the cohesiveness and consistently impressive passages of its predecessor. Those who don't care for the heavy, parody-like Latin influence will likely prefer the composer's recent ''
Mars Needs Moms
''Mars Needs Moms'' is a 2011 American animated science fiction comedy film co-written and directed by Simon Wells, produced by ImageMovers Digital and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Based on the Berkeley Breathed book of the same title, the ...
''. Still, Powell is almost always good for a solid three stars in response to these kinds of efforts, and he achieves that rating again with ease." James Christopher Monger of ''
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
'' wrote "Powell, who worked on all of the Ice Age sequels, as well as King Fu Panda and How to Train Your Dragon, is no stranger to animated films, and his work here is both unobtrusive and effective, blending Midwest Americana and sunny tropicalismo into a tasty summer beverage."
Personnel
Credits adapted from CD liner notes.
* Composer, producer – John Powell
* Assistant production – Devin Kelly, Eric Wegener, Erin McAnally, Grace Lai, Jacob Merryman
* Programming, arrangements – Dominic Lewis, Paul Mounsey, Beth Caucci, Michael Mollo, Victor Chaga
* Engineer – Denis St. Amand
* Recording – Erik Swanson
* Mixing – Brad Haehnel, Shawn Murphy, Greg Hayes, John Traunwieser, Marc Viner, Matt Ward
* Mastering – Fernando Lee, Stephen Marsh
* Editing – David Channing, Tom Carlson
* Executive producer – Robert Townson
* Music co-ordinator – Germaine Franco
* Copyist – Joann Kane Music Service, Mark Graham
; Instruments
* Bass – Ann Atkinson, Bruce Morgenthaler, Chris Kollgaard, Ed Meares, Frances Liu, Mike Valerio, Sue Ranney
* Bassoon – John Mitchell, John Steinmetz, Rose Corrigan
* Cello – Tony Cooke, Tina Soule, Chris Ermacoff, Erika Duke Kirkpatrick, Jodi Burnett, Miguel Martinez, Paul Cohen, Paula Hochhalter, Steve Richards, Tim Loo, Victor Lawrence
* Clarinet – Greg Huckins, Justo Almario, Stuart Clark
* Drums – Mike Shapiro
* Electric Bass – Nico Abondolo, Rene Camacho
* Flute – Chris Bleth, Geri Rotella, Heather Clark, Pedro Eustache
* French Horn – Dan Kelley, Dylan Hart, Jim Thatcher, Jennie Kim, Joe Meyer, Phil Yao, Steve Becknell, Teag Reeves
* Guitar – George Doering, Jemaine Clement, Kleber Jorge, Marcel Camargo, Mikael Mutti, Roberto Montero
* Harp – Katie Kirkpatrick, Marcia Dickstein
* Keyboards – Sergio Mendes
* Oboe – David Weiss, John Yoakum
* Percussion – Alberto Lopez, Antonio DeSantanna, Carlos A.S. De Oliveira, Davi Vieira, Jose "Ce Bruno" Eisenberg, Jose Jesus, Leonardo Costa, Luis Claudio Candido, Marco "Gibi" Dos Santos, Mikael Mutti, Nailton "Meia Noite" Dos Santos, Wagner Profeta Santos, Carlinhos Brown
* Piano, celesta – Randy Kerber
* Saxophone – Dan Higgins, John Mitchell
* Trombone – Alex Iles, Andrew Lippman, Bill Reichenbach, Charlie Loper, Phil Teele
* Trumpet – Dan Fornero, Harry Kim, Jon Lewis, Rick Baptist
* Tuba – Doug Tornquist
* Viola – Alma Fernandez, Andrew Duckles, Brian Dembow, Darren Mc Cann, David Walther, Kate Reddish, Kazi Pitelka, Keith Green, Lynne Richberg, Marlow Fisher, Matt Funes, Thomas Diener, Vickie Miskolczy
* Violin – Alan Grunfeld, Alyssa Park, Ana Landauer, Bruce Dukov, Carol Pool, Darius Campo, Eric Hosler, Eun Mee Ahn, Eve Butler, Grace Oh, Irina Voloshina, Jennie Levin*, Joel Derouin, Julie Rogers, Katia Popov, Kevin Connolly, Liane Mautner, Lily Ho Chen, Marc Sazer, Marina Manukian, Natalie Leggett, Neel Hammond, Nina Evtuhov, Richard Altenbach,
Roberto Cani
Roberto Salvatore Cani (17 October 1967 – 9 April 2025) was an Italian classical violinist based in Los Angeles, where he was concertmaster of the Los Angeles Opera Orchestra from 2011. He gave concerts as a soloist and a chamber musician in E ...
, Sara Parkins, Shalini Vijayan, Sid Page, Tami Hatwan, Yelena Yegoryan, Roger Wilkie
* Whistle – Carlinhos Brown, John Powell, Mikael Mutti
; Orchestra
* Performer – The Hollywood Studio Symphony
* Orchestrated By – Andrew Kinney, Ben Wallfisch, Dave Metzger, Germaine Franco, John Ashton Thomas, Jon Kull, Randy Kerber, Rick Giovinazzo
* Concertmaster – Bruce Dukov
* Score conductor – Pete Anthony
* Score contractor – Gina Zimmitti
* Recording – Tim Lauber
* Stage manager – Greg Dennen, Tom Steel
; Management
* Business affairs (Twentieth Century Fox) – Tom Cavanaugh
* Music clearance (Twentieth Century Fox) – Ellen Ginsburg
* Executive in charge of music (Twentieth Century Fox) – Robert Kraft
* Music co-ordinator (Twentieth Century Fox) – Johnny Choi
* Music supervision (Twentieth Century Fox) – Danielle Diego
* Music production supervisor (Twentieth Century Fox) – Rebecca Morellato
References
{{Sérgio Mendes
2011 soundtrack albums
Animated film soundtracks
Rio (franchise)
John Powell (film composer) soundtracks
Interscope Records soundtracks
Varèse Sarabande soundtracks
Pop soundtracks
Rhythm and blues soundtracks
Pop rock soundtracks
Latin pop soundtracks
Alternative hip-hop albums
Film scores