Back نينا سيمون Arabic نينا سيمون ARZ Nina Simone AST Nina Simone Azerbaijani نینا سیمون AZB Ніна Сімон Byelorussian Нина Симон Bulgarian Nina Simone Breton Nina Simone Catalan Nina Simone Czech
Nina Simone | |
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 Simone in 1965 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Eunice Kathleen Waymon |
| Born | February 21, 1933 Tryon, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Died | April 21, 2003 (aged 70) Carry-le-Rouet, France |
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| Discography | Nina Simone discography |
| Years active | 1954–2003 |
| Labels | |
| Website | www |
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Nina Simone (born Eunice Kathleen Waymon; February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003) (/ˌniːnə sɪˈmoʊn/)[1] was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, composer, arranger and civil rights activist. Her music spanned styles including classical, folk, gospel, blues, jazz, R&B, and pop. In 2023 Rolling Stone ranked Simone at No. 21 on their list of the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time.
The sixth of eight children born into a poor family in North Carolina, Simone initially aspired to be a concert pianist.[2] With the help of a few supporters in her hometown, she enrolled in the Juilliard School of Music in New York City.[3] She then applied for a scholarship to study at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, where, despite a well received audition, she was denied admission,[4] which she attributed to racism. In 2003, just days before her death, the Institute awarded her an honorary degree.[5]
To make a living, Simone started playing piano at a nightclub in Atlantic City. She changed her name to "Nina Simone" to disguise herself from family members, having chosen to play "the devil's music"[4] or so-called "cocktail piano". She was told in the nightclub that she would have to sing to her own accompaniment, which effectively launched her career as a jazz vocalist.[6] She went on to record more than 40 albums between 1958 and 1974, making her debut with Little Girl Blue. She released her first hit single in the United States in 1958 with "I Loves You, Porgy".[2] Her piano playing was strongly influenced by baroque and classical music, especially Johann Sebastian Bach,[7] and accompanied expressive, jazz-like singing in her contralto voice.[8][9]
- ^ Nina Simone in the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary
- ^ a b Simone & Cleary 2003, pp. 1–62
- ^ "Encyclopedia of Jazz Musicians – Nina Simone (Eunice Kathleen Waymon)". Jazz.com. Archived from the original on March 22, 2016. Retrieved October 28, 2013.
- ^ a b Liz Garbus, 2015 documentary film, What Happened, Miss Simone?
- ^ "The Nina Simone Foundation". Archived from the original on June 19, 2008. Retrieved December 7, 2006.
- ^ Pierpont, Claudia Roth (August 6, 2014). "A Raised Voice: How Nina Simone turned the movement into music". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on August 6, 2014. Retrieved August 6, 2014.
- ^ Simone & Cleary 2003, p. 23.
- ^ Simone & Cleary 2003, p. 91.
- ^ Simone & Cleary 2003, pp. 17–19
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