Nina Simonee Essay

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

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

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