History, Remastered
Once known as “the South's swankiest spot”, the Dew Drop Inn is a legendary New Orleans landmark and one of the most culturally significant music venues in the United States. Host to iconic Black musicians of the 50’s and 60’s like Ray Charles, Little Richard, Irma Thomas, and Fats Domino, the venue served as an incubator for the birth of a new sound, Rock ‘n Roll.
But the Dew Drop Inn was more than just a music venue. It was a place where artists played, lived, and recorded, operating as a hotel, a restaurant, nightclub, and a barbershop as well. The diverse business was a testament to the enterprising spirit of Black entrepreneurs amid Jim Crow segregation and was featured in the “Negro Motorist Green Book”, which listed safe ports of call for Black travelers.
Today, the Dew Drop Inn is poised for an exciting revival, reimagined as a destination that blends a historic music venue, a stylish hotel, and a vibrant pool club, inviting visitors to experience the magic that happens when the past and the present harmonize.
FRANK PAINIA
A barber by trade with a mind for business
The Dew Drop Inn opens barbershop and bar/restaurant on the first floor of a two-story residential building.
As businesses grew, Frank Painia purchased the single-story residential building next door.
The buildings were heavily renovated to connect into one complex, raising the second building and matching the storefronts.
The buildings were heavily renovated to connect into one complex, raising the second building and matching the storefronts.
ON THE CHITTLIN’ CIRCUIT
Tommy Ridgley got his start by singing ‘Finey Brown Blues’ at the Dew Drop Inn’s amatuer night.
Little Richard visited the Dew Drop Inn for the first time, jumped on stage and performed the first, more crude version of ‘Tutti Frutti’. He performed at the Dew Drop into the ‘70s.
‘Dew Drop Inn’ track released by Little Richard and co-written by Esquerita who recorded his own version in the 1950s, but released in 1991.
THE END AND THE REVIVAL
Live music venue shutters among desegregation and Frank Painia’s failing health. The hotel continues to operate.
Frank Painia passes away.
Hurricane Katrina closes the Dew Drop’s doors completely.
Developer Curtis Doucette, Jr closes on the purchase of the Dew Drop Inn from Frank Painia’s grandson Kenneth Jackson.
The Dew Drop Inn is planned to reopen as a music venue, boutique hotel and pool club.
