[3] In 2020, "Rainbow Connection" was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry.

For the song that became "Rainbow Connection", Jim Henson told them that the opening scene should feature Kermit the Frog by himself, singing and playing the banjo.

[7] Allmusic described "Rainbow Connection" as an "unlikely radio hit ... which Kermit the Frog sings with all the dreamy wistfulness of a short, green Judy Garland"[8] and went on to add that "'Rainbow Connection' serves the same purpose in The Muppet Movie that 'Over the Rainbow' served in The Wizard of Oz, with nearly equal effectiveness: an opening establishment of the characters' driving urge for something more in life.

The iTunes release of The Muppets soundtrack included a new version of the song as an exclusive bonus track, recorded by Steve Whitmire, the then-current performer of Kermit.

In 1996 in Whanganui, New Zealand, a 21-year-old man burst into the radio station Star FM and took the manager hostage, demanding that Kermit the Frog's rendition of the song be played.

[20] On September 24, 2011, the town of Leland, Mississippi, changed the name of a local bridge to "The Rainbow Connection" in honor of Henson on what would have been his 75th birthday.