Nina Simone - "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood"

In honor of Black History Month all the posts for this month will feature artists of color.

Her influence on the world through music and through social justice will never be forgotten. She combatted racism, patriarchy, and the public disdain for mental illness. She was a warrior, and though she had her flaws, what genius did not. 

Born Eunice Waymon in North Carolina, the sixth child of a preacher, she aspired to be a concert pianist. With the help of a few supporters in her hometown of Tryon, North Carolina, she enrolled in the Juilliard School of Music in New York.

Eunice then applied for a scholarship to study at the prestigious Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, where she was denied admission despite a well-received audition. Waymon became fully convinced this rejection had been entirely due to racial discrimination. Years later, nine days before her death, the Curtis Institute of Music bestowed on her an honorary degree.

To make a living, Eunice Waymon changed her name to "Nina Simone". The change related to her need to disguise herself from family members, having chosen to play "the devil's music"or "cocktail piano" at a nightclub in Atlantic City. She was told in the nightclub that she would have to sing to her own accompaniment, and this effectively launched her career as a jazz vocalist.

Simone recorded more than 40 albums, mostly between 1958, when she made her debut with Little Girl Blue, and 1974. She had a hit in the United States in 1958 with "I Loves You, Porgy".

Simone's musical style fused gospel and pop with classical music, in particular Johann Sebastian Bach,and accompanied expressive, jazz-like singing in her contralto voice. In 2018, Simone will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

So today, with life swarming all around me in murmurations, I choose Nina Simone's "Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood" as my, with the oppressive heat and a jubilant spirit, onward and upward, to hope, song for a, life is worth the wander, go find your adventure, you have every chance you can take, Monday.