Downtown Disney Changes Its Playlist: No More Songs Of The South
“Song of the South” is no more (at least on the soundtrack to Downtown Disney in Anaheim). Now, 74 years later, the final notes of a troubling legacy are quickly fading into history; an unfortunate footnote relegated to the vault.
Almost.
The OCR’s Brady MacDonald posted:
Splash Mountain
Disneyland has quietly taken the first small but symbolic steps toward removing the controversial “Song of the South” theme from Splash Mountain in preparation for a new “Princess and the Frog” transformation of the Critter Country log flume ride.
Disneyland has removed the “Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah” song from the Downtown Disney background music loop and stripped any reference to the “Song of the South” from the Splash Mountain website.
[The Park] remains closed indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Downtown Disney outdoor shopping mall reopened in July with reduced capacity and COVID-19 safety protocols.
For my part: I remember loving Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah as a child; singing the melody on the swings as a kid right alongside music from Sesame Street and The Muppets.
Two-thirds of that provenance aged well.
But now, well, let’s just say I’m excited for MY children to sing, “I’m almost there…”
The Princess and the Frog
MacDonald added:
The removal of the song from Downtown Disney’s background music is part of a continuous process to deliver an environment that features stories that are relevant and inclusive, Disneyland officials said.
In July, the Disney Parks Blog posted:
Splash Mountain reimagined.
Splash Mountain – at both Disneyland park in California and Magic Kingdom park in Florida – will soon be completely reimagined. The theme is inspired by an all-time favorite animated Disney film, “The Princess and the Frog.” We pick up this story after the final kiss, and join Princess Tiana and Louis on a musical adventure – featuring some of the powerful music from the film – as they prepare for their first-ever Mardi Gras performance.
Stay tuned…
