Several well-known songs have recently been inducted into the Library of Congress.
The Super Mario Theme by Koji Kondo and Daddy Yankee’s “Gasolina” are among 25 recordings added to the Library of Congress‘ National Recording Registry this year, according to the Library of Congress’ website. The National Recording Registry adds songs to its library that are considered “culturally, historically or aesthetically significant” and are at least 10 years old. (RELATED: Dr. Dre’s Album ‘The Chronic’ And Whitney Houston’s Single ‘I Will Always Love You’ To Enter The Library Of Congress)
A video game theme song, probably the most recognizable in history, is also a first for the #NatRecRegistry. The Super Mario Bros. theme by Koji Kondo helped establish the game’s legendary status & proved that the Nintendo sound chip was capable of vast musical complexity. pic.twitter.com/RHPaXV1WLs
— Library of Congress (@librarycongress) April 12, 2023
“Gasolina” and another song called “Flashdance” by the late Irene Cara were nominated by the Congressional Hispanic Caucus to bring more awareness to Latino artists, according to Axios.
The Super Mario Theme, known as “The Ground Theme” is the first video game music to be inducted into the National Recording Registry, according to The Guardian.
Nintendo and Illumination Entertainment released The Super Mario Bros. Movie on April 5, and it beat Frozen 2 for the highest grossing animated film on its opening weekend, according to Time.
Some other well-known songs added to the National Recording Registry this year are Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You” and Madonna’s “Like a Virgin.”
“The national library is proud to help ensure these recordings are preserved for generations to come, and we welcome the public’s input on what songs, speeches, podcasts or recorded sounds we should preserve next. We received more than 1,100 public nominations this year for recordings to add to the registry,” Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden said in a statement.