Nina Simone: a look at The High Priestess of Soul
Get to know about the brilliant Nina Simone
The unique and powerful voice of the soul-filled singer-songwriter Nina Simone still marks, haunts and resonates with us today. Why not learn a little more about her life?
Where was Nina Simone from?
Eunice Kathleen Waymon (otherwise known as Nina Simone) was born in Tryon, North Carolina, in 1933. Nina was the sixth youngest child
Early on in her life she, actually, pursued becoming a classical pianist, with her mother wanting her to be the greatest in the world. Nina would study at Juilliard School of Music in New York City. However, she also began singing too in the 1950s when she was threatened to be sacked if she did not sing by a club owner she was employed by.
Her debut album - Little Girl Blue - was released in 1959by Bethlehem Records, and her hit song ‘I Loves You, Porgy’ rose her to stardom. Her rendition of the song would lead to her being awarded a Grammy Hall of Fame Award (2000).
Following her debut success, Nina signed with Colpix Records and released a string of releases with them. However, she was artistically repressed by the company and it wasn’t until she switched to Philips in 1964 that she was able to explore her African-American heritage and include themes of racial inequality into her work.
Nina Simone and the Civil Rights movement
Even when she was 12, she was sensitive to racism when playing in a concert, her parents were forced to stand at the back as they were black after having sat in the front row. Legend has it that she refused to play until her parents were returned to the front.
Whilst applying to music school, she applied for a scholarship at the Curtis Institute of Music. Philadelphia. Despite a brilliant audition, she was denied a place, which she accredited to racial discrimination. A few days before she passed away, she is understood to have learned that the school would be awarding an honorary degree.
She become synonymous with the Civil Rights movement in the US during the 1960s. During this time she wove protest songs into her musical repertoire, alongside befriending leading figures like Martin Luther King Jr., as well as Malcom X.
The significance of songs such as ‘Mississippi Goddam’ are clearly evident, as in 2019 the song was picked by the Library of Congress in the National Recording Registry, as the song is “"culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
Frustrated by the persistence of American racism, she left the US in 1973 and went on to live in Barbados, Africa and Europe for the remainder of her life.
What happened to Nina Simone in later life?
Nina semi-retired in the mid-1970s. In a 1985 Guardian interview with John Fordham, Nina claimed that during this time “I was trying to get out of the music business. Because it’s too hard. It’s a hard business. “
During the 1980s, Simone was living in France and extremely lonely; her mental illness was worsening and her family life was fractured. She was go onto be diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
However, she made somewhat of a comeback as her work became recognised by younger audiences.
You can hear our very own David Freeman in conversation with her on Jazz FM here.
When did Nina Simone die?
As a result of her comeback, she continued performing to an international crowd during the 1980s and 1990s, despite her frequent poor health.
Having suffered with cancer in her final years, Nina Simone died in 2003 of natural causes at the age of 70,