Nina Simone

21 February 1933 – 21 April 2003

Nina Simone was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, and civil rights activist whose music spanned jazz, blues, folk, gospel, and classical. Known for a distinctive contralto voice and politically charged songs, she became an icon of the civil rights movement.

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Lived at the same time

Well-documented people whose lives overlapped with Nina Simone.

Life events

Born in Tryon, North Carolina
21 February 1933

Eunice Kathleen Waymon, later Nina Simone, was born in Tryon, North Carolina.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Birth ✓
Studied at the Juilliard School
1950

Simone briefly studied piano at Juilliard in New York, aspiring to be a classical concert pianist.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Began performing under the name Nina Simone
1954

She adopted the stage name while playing piano and singing in Atlantic City clubs.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Career ✓
Recorded 'I Loves You, Porgy'
1958

Her interpretation became a Top 20 hit and her first major success.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
Achievement ✓
Wrote 'Mississippi Goddam'
1964

Simone composed the civil rights protest song in response to racial violence in the South.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Left the United States
1970

Simone departed the U.S. and lived abroad in Barbados, Liberia, and later Europe.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Settled in France
1993

Simone spent her later years living in southern France.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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Died in Carry-le-Rouet, France
21 April 2003

Simone died at her home in France at age 70.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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