Nina Simone was an American singer, pianist, composer and activist whose singular musicianship erased conventional boundaries between jazz, blues, classical music, gospel, folk and soul. Born Eunice Waymon in Tryon, North Carolina, she trained as a classical pianist before club work led her to adopt the name Nina Simone. Recordings including “My Baby Just Cares for Me,” “Sinnerman,” “I Put a Spell on You,” “Feeling Good” and the civil-rights anthem “Mississippi Goddam” revealed both extraordinary interpretive power and uncompromising political conviction. Her influence stretches across jazz, R&B, rock, hip-hop and modern singer-songwriters.
