Contents
Nina Simone
Bringing classical piano and civil-rights conviction into soul music.
Feeling Good · Mississippi Goddam
- Born
- 21 February 1933
- Birthplace
- Tryon, North Carolina, USA
- Died
- 21 April 2003
More people
Nina Simone
An American musician whose performances crossed jazz, gospel, folk and classical traditions, with political songs central to her repertoire.
Early life
Church pianist
Born Eunice Waymon; began playing piano in early childhood.
Classical ambition
Studied at Juilliard during a summer while preparing for further musical training.
Career
- 1954
Nightclub performer
Adopted Nina Simone while playing and singing in Atlantic City.
- 1959
Recording breakthrough
I Loves You, Porgy reached a wider audience.
- 1960s
Political songwriting
Made the civil-rights struggle a central subject of her music.
Selected work
Mississippi Goddam
A protest song responding to racist violence.
Feeling Good
Recorded the song for I Put a Spell on You.
To Be Young, Gifted and Black
Co-wrote a song inspired by Lorraine Hansberry.
Beyond work
Life abroad
Lived outside the United States for much of her later life.
France
Settled near Aix-en-Provence in 1993.
Sources & photo credit
Biographical reference ↗Library of Congress: Mississippi Goddam ↗Photo: Gerrit de Bruin. CC BY 4.0 · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
