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Simone

Simone - vocalist

She is her own woman, a singer, songwriter and performer whose ability to transcend genres echoes the tradition of her mother, musical icon and pioneer Nina Simone. Blessed with a rich vocal range, an innate skill for lyrical interpretation and a soul-deep understanding of music as a means of healing, empowerment and celebration, Simone is very much her mother’s daughter, she is most assuredly a multi-talented artist in her own right.

A highly-praised live performer whose impressive resume includes starring roles on Broadway in such acclaimed musicals as Rent and Aida, Simone has developed an exciting and diverse repertoire of pop, soul, jazz, rock and funk, expressed in shows she’s done throughout the U.S. and in the UK, Ireland, Holland, Finland, Spain and France. With the February 2008 release of her first full-length album, “Simone On Simone” (a big band tribute to her mother produced by famed jazz musician and arranger Bob Belden), music lovers worldwide will discover the vocal dynamism that live audiences have witnessed for over a decade. “This is my tribute to my mother, a chance for me to do the songs I love the most the way I hear them. It’s a glimpse of my life over four decades…”

Born Lisa Celeste Stroud in Mount Vernon in upstate New York, Simone’s earliest exposure to music naturally came through her mother’s work as a globally-loved musician and freedom fighter but she recalls, “I heard a lot of other artists because we had albums by Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, Gladys Knight & The Pips, gospel records by all of the Hawkins family and Reverend James Cleveland. The radio was on when my mother was traveling to gigs so I heard everything " The Beatles and The Mamas & The Papas to two of my all-time favorites, Ronnie Dyson and Donny Hathaway. Of course I heard my mother’s music: the albums I remember the most are “Silk & Soul” and “The High Priestess Of Soul.” Miriam Makeba was a constant favorite in our house but I didn’t hear much jazz and even though my mother was classically trained, I never heard much classical music.

Simone - who was featured in 1972 with her mother in a photo spread for “Essence” magazine - spent most of her early childhood in New York City, and then in Nina’s home state of North Carolina before accompanying her globe-trotting mother to Liberia, Barbados and Switzerland. She completed her education in the U.S. and joined the USAF in 1982. “Actually, I originally planned to be an international lawyer,” Simone recalls with a smile. “Then I went through ‘reactive active rebellion’ and enlisted in to the military!”

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Interview

"Simone": Honoring the Legacy of Nina Simone

Read ""Simone": Honoring the Legacy of Nina Simone" reviewed by Victor L. Schermer


Nina Simone was one of the finest female vocalists of the twentieth century. Indeed in the opinion of Elton John and others, she was the greatest of them all. In addition, she left her mark not only on music but also on the Civil Rights Movement and the social and political history of our country and the world, championing the cause of African Americans. Outspoken in her views and demanding in her work, she never catered to popular tastes. Instead, ...

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Recording

NIna Simone: Lost Album, 1982

NIna Simone: Lost Album, 1982

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers

Nina Simone lived in Paris from 1981 to 1983. Like most American artists who take up residence there, the elegance and majesty of the city transforms them. During these years, Simone lived in southern Paris near the Parc Montsouris in the 14th arrondissement, in a small, 260-square foot apartment that was largely empty except for a piano. Parc Montsouris was created by Emperor Napoleon III and is one of the city's largest public green spaces. In the winter of 1982, ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Nina Simone

Jazz Musician of the Day: Nina Simone

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Nina Simone's birthday today!

The High Priestess- Eunice Waymon was born in Tryon, North Carolina as the sixth of seven children in a poor family. The child prodigy played piano at the age of four. With the help of her music teacher, who set up the “Eunice Waymon Fund", she could continue her general and musical education. She studied at the Julliard School of Music in New York. To support her family financially, she started ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Nina Simone

Jazz Musician of the Day: Nina Simone

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Nina Simone's birthday today!

The High Priestess- Eunice Waymon was born in Tryon, North Carolina as the sixth of seven children in a poor family. The child prodigy played piano at the age of four. With the help of her music teacher, who set up the “Eunice Waymon Fund", she could continue her general and musical education. She studied at the Julliard School of Music in New York. To support her family financially, she started ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Nina Simone

Jazz Musician of the Day: Nina Simone

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Nina Simone's birthday today!

The High Priestess- Eunice Waymon was born in Tryon, North Carolina as the sixth of seven children in a poor family. The child prodigy played piano at the age of four. With the help of her music teacher, who set up the “Eunice Waymon Fund", she could continue her general and musical education. She studied at the Julliard School of Music in New York. To support her family financially, she started ...

1

Award / Grant

Rock Hall Of Fame 2018 Nominees Announced: Radiohead, Eurythmics, Judas Priest, Nina Simone Among 9 First Time Nominees

Rock Hall Of Fame 2018 Nominees Announced: Radiohead, Eurythmics, Judas Priest, Nina Simone Among 9 First Time Nominees

Source: HypeBot

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announced the 19 nominees of its 2018 class overnight. Nine, including Rage Against The Machine, Eurythmics, Judas Priest, Moody Blues and Nina Simone are among nine first time Rock Hall nominees. The complete list of 2018 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominees. First time nominees are noted with an *. Bon Jovi Kate Bush* The Cars Depeche Mode Dire Straits* Eurythmics*

1

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Nina Simone

Jazz Musician of the Day: Nina Simone

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Nina Simone's birthday today!

The High Priestess- Eunice Waymon was born in Tryon, North Carolina as the sixth of seven children in a poor family. The child prodigy played piano at the age of four. With the help of her music teacher, who set up the “Eunice Waymon Fund", she could continue her general and musical education. She studied at the Julliard School of Music in New York. To support her family financially, she started ...

2

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Nina Simone

Jazz Musician of the Day: Nina Simone

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Nina Simone's birthday today!

The High Priestess- Eunice Waymon was born in Tryon, North Carolina as the sixth of seven children in a poor family. The child prodigy played piano at the age of four. With the help of her music teacher, who set up the “Eunice Waymon Fund", she could continue her general and musical education. She studied at the Julliard School of Music in New York. To support her family financially, she started ...

1

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Nina Simone

Jazz Musician of the Day: Nina Simone

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Nina Simone's birthday today! The High Priestess - Eunice Waymon was born in Tryon, North Carolina as the sixth of seven children in a poor family. The child prodigy played piano at the age of four. With the help of her music teacher, who set up the “Eunice Waymon Fund", she could continue her general and musical education. She studied at the Julliard School of Music in New York. To support her family financially, she ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Nina Simone

Jazz Musician of the Day: Nina Simone

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Nina Simone's birthday today!

The High Priestess - Eunice Waymon was born in Tryon, North Carolina as the sixth of seven children in a poor family. The child prodigy played piano at the age of four. With the help of her music teacher, who set up the “Eunice Waymon Fund", she could continue her general and musical education. She studied at the Julliard School of Music in New York. To support her family financially, she ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Nina Simone

Jazz Musician of the Day: Nina Simone

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Nina Simone's birthday today!

The High Priestess - Eunice Waymon was born in Tryon, North Carolina as the sixth of seven children in a poor family. The child prodigy played piano at the age of four. With the help of her music teacher, who set up the “Eunice Waymon Fund", she could continue her general and musical education. She studied at the Julliard School of Music in New York. To support her family financially, she ...

Photos

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Fidus Band

Alfamusic
2010

buy

The Halfduck Mystery

RevJazz Music
2010

buy

Simone On Simone

Unknown label
2008

buy

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