The Ultimate New Orleans, Louisiana, Road Trip Playlist
Spotify has curated playlists reflecting the local flavor of each stop on HuffPost’s “Listen to America” tour using location-based data to find out what people are really listening to in 20-plus cities. Check back for more from Sept. 12 through Oct. 30.
One of Louisiana’s first governors once apparently commented all the way back in the early 19th century that New Orleans residents were practically ungovernable because they liked to dance too much. So how would he have reacted to the city’s love affair with jazz and big band music is fun to imagine. This swampy Deep South town is home to a number of old-school musicians in that ilk, including the band leader Dr. John, pioneering jazz clarinetist Sidney Bechet and trumpeter Kermit Ruffins. Louis Armstrong got his start here before taking on the world, as did Harry Connick Jr. and rock ‘n’ roll pioneer Fats Domino, who died earlier this week. The ’70s-era funk groups The Meters and The Neville Brothers came out of New Orleans and, a couple decades later, rappers Lil Wayne and Master P, among others.
More than elsewhere around the country, New Orleanians have been particularly fond of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ “Louisiana Rain” lately, according to Spotify. Other favorites around here include local “groove-oriented jam band” The Revivalists, soul singer Leon Bridges and, in a fun surprise for “American Horror Story” fans, Stevie Nicks. Catch the full list below:
Spotify playlists for the “Listen to America” campaign were created by looking at each location’s most popular songs (streaming in the highest numbers at time of publication), distinctive songs (currently being streamed more in this city compared to all other cities in the world) and tracks from local artists. While many picks are data-driven, some songs are handpicked from data lists to assure the playlists reflect a variety of genres and decades, as well as a healthy gender balance.
This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
