A Crescent City native from the famed Lower Ninth Ward, Robin Barnes is New Orleans. Barnes, declared “The Songbird of New Orleans,” in an official proclamation by a past New Orleans mayor, has throughout her career brought the sounds of the city to a global audience.
Barnes first broke through in the jazz world: her 2016 EP Songbird Sessions debuted at #5 on Billboard’s Traditional Jazz Chart. She’s opened for GRAMMY-winning trumpeter Chris Botti and the jazz duo Alfredo Rodriguez and Pedrito Maratinez, the former of whom studied under the iconic Quincy Jones.
More recently, Barnes has broadened her sound to incorporate more of the musical DNA of Louisiana, spanning funk and bounce and zydeco. In the last two years, she’s performed on episodes of “Queer As Folk” and “Daisy Jones & The Six.” This May, Barnes will perform at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, and already in 2025 she's covered New Orleans' St. Charles Avenue magazine and was featured in the Louisiana cultural magazine Country Roads.
Looking ahead, Barnes is at work on her debut album that will honor her native Louisiana roots, spanning the diverse genres native to the state’s culture. Last year, the Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana certified her as a “Louisiana State Ambassador,” a title she shares with GRAMMY winners Lainey Wilson and Lauren Daigle.
Barnes’ New Orleans identity runs deep: after suffering a health scare following a summer tour, she created “Move Ya Brass,” a fitness community and lifestyle group drawing on the city’s own culture to inspire physical movement. The organization’s “Twerk Ya Brass” class debuted at Bonnaroo in 2019 and continues to be a favorite among NOLA locals and visitors alike.
