Feature: Nina Simone
This article is the first in a series about historically iconic Black artists and creatives. This series was started with the intention of shedding light on the importance of Black artists in all aspects of the creative sphere, but, especially, to note that many of them spearheaded some of the most influential trends and art forms of our time with little recognition. Stay tuned for more additions as they are published!
By Maria Kornacki
PC: Jack Johnson, 1969
Nina Simone set her own standard for Pop and Jazz, ultimately driving her into other genres as proof of her transformative versatility. She was a classically trained pianist from age three, and her piano-playing would eventually become the root of her identity throughout her entire career.
Throughout her life, though, Simone battled with her Blackness. Not only did she face personal struggles, but she was also forced to face these same issues within the music industry as a Black female artist.
Nina Simone’s first encounter with racial discrimination was at age 12, during one of her recitals. Her parents were forced out of their front row seats to make room for a white family. First-hand experiences of racism would follow her into adulthood, as she came to terms with her rejection from Curtis Institute of Arts for the same reason. The music industry was no more attuned to these issues, too, ultimately leading Simone on an uphill battle for proper recognition and payment.
Her low registers are an acquired taste, and still, Simone’s songs are undeniable encapsulations of history, especially as she began her career at the height of the Civil Rights Movement. Eventually, her protest music erupted from the anger she felt regarding America’s politics at the time. Said frustrations are evidently set free in her songs such as, “Mississippi Goddam,” “Four Women,” and “Backlash Blues,” to name a few. Nina addressed systemic racism through her dignified performances and earth-shattering piano playing.
Simone often played music someone else wrote and yet, her interpretations still carried an innate mysticism. She was more concerned with the message of the music rather than the sound, and this intuition shaped her individuality.
For example, a play called “To Be Young, Gifted, and Black” (produced by Lorraine Hansberry) inspired the creation of the Nina Simone Civil Rights anthem of the same name. More specifically, an image of Hansberry—who also happened to be Nina’s friend and the author of A Raisin in the Sun—in a New York Times article spoke to Simone’s creative instincts. Simone’s musical director, Weldon Irvine, helped write what she couldn’t express lyrically, and they had the song two days later.
Although Nina Simone was classically trained on piano, she found an equally strong sense of purpose in her voice. Not many female artists have exhibited the ability to consume each note as if it were a song in itself, like she did. Throughout her discography, her soulful range erupts from her core and then soars, all within the same note. Not to mention, her Bach-infused piano riffs are an anomaly the music industry today has yet to manifest.
Ultimately, Nina Simone unified fans across a spectrum of genres by spreading messages that reflected prevalent demands for action. Her assertive activism spoke to the masses, creating a movement within the music.
