Nina Simone
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Nina Simone was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, and civil rights activist who lived from 1933 to 2003. She matters because she combined her musical talents with activism, using her platform to advocate for civil rights during a pivotal era in American history.
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Eunice Kathleen Waymon (21 February 1933 – 21 April 2003), better known by her stage name Nina Simone, was an American singer, pianist, arranger, and civil rights activist widely associated with jazz music. Simone aspired to become a classical pianist while working in a broad range of styles including classical, jazz, blues, soul, folk, rhythm and blues, gospel, and pop. Simone was born Eunice Kathleen Waymon on 21st February 1933 in Tryon, North Carolina, USA, one of eight children. <a href="h
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Nina Simone (/ˈniːnə sɪˈmoʊn/ NEE-nə sim-OHN; born Eunice Kathleen Waymon; February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003) was an American composer concert pianist, singer, songwriter, and civil rights activist. Simone's bearing and stage presence earned her the title the High Priestess of Soul. Her music spanned styles including classical, folk, gospel, blues, jazz, R&B, and pop. Her piano playing was strongly influenced by baroque and classical music, especially Johann Sebastian Bach, and accompanied expressive, jazz-like singing in her contralto voice. Rolling Stone named Simone one of the greatest singers on various lists.
The sixth of eight children born into a respected family in North Carolina, Simone initially aspired to be a concert pianist. With the help of a local fund set up in her hometown, she enrolled at Allen High School for Girls, then spent a summer at the Juilliard School of Music in New York City, preparing to apply for a scholarship to study at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. She failed to gain admission to Curtis, which she attributed to racism. She remained musically active until her death in 2003, a day or two after the institute awarded her an honorary degree.
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1933 births2003 deaths20th-century African-American women singers20th-century American pianists20th-century American singers20th-century American women singers20th-century autobiographersActivists for African-American civil rightsAfrican-American feministsAfrican-American LGBTQ peopleAfrican-American pianistsAfrican-American women singer-songwriters