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The impact of Nina Simone's music on the civil rights movement
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Nina Simone, born Eunice Kathleen Waymon, was a composer, pianist, singer, equal rights activist commonly associated with jazz music. She was born February 21 1933 and died April 21 2003. Simone aimed to be a classical pianist while working a broad range of styles such as classical, jazz, blues, folk, R&B, gospel and pop.
Her stage name came during the time she performed at the Midtown Bar & Grill on Pacific Avenue in Atlantic City to fund her private piano lessons. The owner of the bar insisted that she sing as well as play the piano. In 1954 while performing there, she adopted the stage name Nina Simone. "Nina" (from niña, meaning 'little girl' in Spanish) was a nickname a boyfriend had given to her, and "Simone" was taken from the French
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She performed and recorded a wide range of music. In 1965, "I Put A Spell On You" came out, "a fearsome measure of how hypnotic Simone could be",[John Fordham, The Guardian, Tuesday 22 April 2003]. Many albums recorded by Philips and RCA followed.
Simone recorded more than 60 albums and composed over 500 songs. She was the first woman to win the Jazz Cultural Award. She was also awarded "Woman of the Year" 1966, Jazz at Home Club and Female Jazz Singer of the Year, 1967, National Association of Television and Radio Announcers. I can only imagine her mother's pride, when Nina was only three and wanted her to become "the world's greatest classical pianist - the first black one."
On Human Kindness Day 1974 in Washington, D.C., more than 10,000 people paid tribute to Simone. She received two honorary degrees in music and humanities, from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and Malcolm X College
Only two days before her death, Simone was awarded an honorary degree by the Curtis Institute, the music school that had refused to admit her as a student at the beginning of her
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She made it clear that she became very angry with American society. After the bombings of a church that killed four young black girls, she was enraged. After her husband talked her out of getting a weapon and going out for vengeance, she agreed that violence was not the answer. She focused on her songs, and the outcome included her composition of "Mississippi Goddam" and performances of Billie Holiday's "Strange Fruit". So, how does "Sinnerman" fit in with the issue of Civil Rights? Many agree that the song is about America's turmoil and the "sinnerman" is the country.
Simone often used this long piece to end her live performances. She once said, "I feel my origins very deeply. My art is anchored in the culture of my people, and I am immensely proud. No matter what I sing, whether it's a ballad or a lament, it's all the same thing—I want people to know who I am" Gospel had a major impact on Nina, and this song definitely reveals that. The song "Feeling Good" was actually written by Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse for the 1964 musical "the Roar of the Greasepaint – The Smell of the Crowd". The song had been performed first at on the UK tour on the Broadway
Ella was born in Newport News, Virginia on April 25, 1917. When alled “The First Lady of Song” by some fans. She was known for having beautiful tone, extended range, and great intonation, and famous for her improvisational scat singing. Ella sang during the her most famous song was “A-tiscket A-tasket”. Fitzgerald sang in the period of swing, ballads, and bebop; she made some great albums with other great jazz artists such as Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Louis Armstrong. She influenced countless American popular singers of the post-swing period and also international performers such as the singer Miriam Makeba. She didn’t really write any of her own songs. Instead she sang songs by other people in a new and great way. The main exception
Lewis, Jone J. "Josephine Baker." About.com Women's History. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Dec. 2013. .
The African-American civil rights movement was a cruel time for the African American race to endure due to the harsh discrimination and segregation that they faced. This movement fought for the rights and the equality of African Americans in the United States. With all that was going on, African Americans turned to music for motivation, courage, inspiration and strength to overcome the difficult obstacles that they would soon face. “Non-violence marchers faced beating, hosing, burning, shooting, or jail with no defense other than their courage and songs” (Hast 45). “It's been a long, a long time coming/ But I know a change gonna come, oh yes it will” (Cooke, Sam. A Change Is Gonna Come). Music was their greatest hope for change in the near future and is the thing that kept them fighting for what they deserved. They came together with each other due to the lyrics of many different songs that kept the civil rights movement alive and known. Music painted a vision that they could picture and look forward to; it was a dream that they could fight for. “Music empowered African Americans to hold tight to their dream of racial equality” (Jeske). A genre of music that bought society together during this movement was folk.
It’s no question that Janet Jackson is one of the most iconic and influential artist of all time. She has sold over 100 million albums; her tours have had some the highest selling debuts of all time, not to mention the chart topping hits she has created over the past 30 years. Janet’s presence alone is iconic. She has left an unforgettable impression on the music industry as a whole. Her music has affected fans and music lovers all around the world. Her influence is simply not a question it is a salutation to a musical icon that has embedded her legacy into musical history.
Josephine Baker was an exceptional woman who never depended on a man. She never hesitated to leave a man when she felt good and ready. In her lifetime she accomplished many great things. She adopted 12 children, served France during World War II, and was an honorable correspondent for the French Resistance. She fought against fascism in Europe during World War II and racism in the United States. She grew up poor and left home at an early age and worked her way onto the stage. Baker was more popular in France than in the states. Audiences in America were racist towards Baker and that’s when she vowed she wouldn’t perform in a place that wasn’t integrated.
...ng to this day, she is one of few who could compete with the men of hip-hop, but she never pretended to be anything but a woman. She not only sang about female empowerment, but she wrote about being a woman from the insecurities that we as women sometimes feel to the nirvana of being in love. Sensuality and femininity were always as important to her which was her strength, and message to get out to women especially those of color.
According to Ruth Feldstein “Nina Simone recast black activism in the 1960’s.” Feldstein goes on to say that “Simone was known to have supported the struggle for black freedom in the United States much earlier, and in a more outspoken manner around the world than many other African American entertainers.” Her family ties to the south, her unique talent, her ability to travel and make money are similar to the Blues women movement that preceded her. It can be said that Nina Simone goes a step further the by directly attacking inequities pertaining to race and gender in her music. However, what distinguishes her is her unique musicianship and that is what ultimately garners her massive exposure and experiences over those of her past contemporaries.
Ella was born on April 25, 1917, in Newport News, Virginia. In school, she sang in glee club, but her passion was to rather dance. In the 1920s and early 1930s , jazz began to sweep the nation. In 1932, Fitzgerald’s mother was killed in a car accident. After her mother’s death, the two sisters were shifted among her family members and Ella became a restless, unhappy teen. She usually w...
Known mostly by her stage names, “Lady Ella”, “The Queen of Jazz”, and “The First Lady of Song”; Ella Jane Fitzgerald, born in Newport News, Virginia on April 25th 1917 was renowned for her improvisational ability in her scat singing. She never
Since 1914, Canadian Human Rights laws have had a positive impact on helping to shape Canadian identity as one that is welcoming to various minority groups. Being a Canadian citizen provides you with the freedoms to travel, and settle in Canada at your own will and desire. Also, the freedom to express your sexual orientation is welcomed and well supported in many communities. Modern discrimination against categorizing human beings is very slim and everyone of all ethnic or cultural backgrounds are welcome with respect and good intentions. Canada is an extremely welcoming and protective place, in which nearly everything is done to promote equality, and a safe country.
...becoming the first Africa American to tour with an all white band and also the first African American women to sign a long-term contract with
Aretha was born into a family that attended a Baptist church, with her father named, C.L Franklin, who was a Baptist preacher and gospel singer. Her mother was also a gospel singer and somehow there came to be reports that her mother had abandoned Aretha and her siblings, but she claims it to be all a lie (“CNN”). She was the fourth of five children, and lost her mother in 1952, a few years after her parents had gotten divorced.
Josephine Baker Josephine Baker was an African American woman who had to overcome discrimination and abuse in achieving her dream of becoming a singer and dancer. She did this during the 1920s, when African Americans faced great discrimination. She had a hard childhood. Her personal life was not easy to handle. Furthermore, she overcame poverty and racism to achieve her career dream.
Schoettler, Carl. "Tinged with Sorrow but Sung with Love; Blues: `Strange Fruit,' the Mournful Dirge about Lynching, is Forever Linked with Billie Holiday. A New Book about the Singer from Baltimore Recalls the Moment She Introduced it." The Baltimore Sun Jun 13 2000: 1.F. ProQuest Central. 16 Nov. 2011
Kate Chopin was a feminist American short story and novelist. She is known as an advocate of feminist authors of the 20th century. Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, and Brontes influenced her writing. She grew up in a household full of women; including her mother, great-grandmother and the female maids her mother owned. Kate spent a lot of time up in her attack reading.