Nina Simone

Nina Simone has always been a musical idol of mine. I always felt a deep connection to her powerful voice, and admired her ability to convey emotions, messages and elicit emotional responses in me, despite being from such a different time. It was not until I stumbled across the documentary on Youtube last week, ‘What Happened, Miss Simone?” until I realized how revolutionary she really was, and how she used her voice to put a spell on many other individuals.

Nina Simone (1933-2003) was an American singer, a black activist, a mother and a revolutionary. She was raised in a time where societal restraints, such as oppression, segregation and isolation were overtly imposed on her because of the colour of her skin. Transgressing many cross-sectional boundaries, and challenging historical norms and traditions, Nina’s goal was to become the “first black classical pianist in America.” She had a way of eliciting emotional responses in her audiences, and used the power of her voice to address racial inequalities, issues of freedom and question identity within a rigid, hegemonic social order. As Nina’s stature as a popular artist within mainstream society grew, she integrated views regarding black civil rights into her songs. Due to political, socio-economic and contextual circumstances Nina’s performances by dominant, mainstream, Western corporations and audiences often weren’t warmly regarding, which, along with other contributing factors, lead Nina to a state of despair and psychological trauma. I want to argue, that despite Nina’s downward spiral in later life, she made a dent in confronting racial prejudices and injustices, and helped circulate alternative social ideas despite being bound down by a rigid, capitalist regime.

The documentary touches on the injustices, inequities and oppression, Nina faced throughout her life. Some defining moments in her childhood help the audience understand the pain, loneliness and sense of isolation that seem to have been recurring themes throughout Nina’s life. Raised in North Carolina, Nina was picked out from a revival church piano recital by two white women who decided to give her piano lessons. She had to cross the train tracks every morning to have lessons. The train tracks, which were a literal divide between black and white communities, lead her to her piano teacher who scared Nina; “It was her being white..”, “She was alien to me.”

Nina started playing disciplined, classical music, such as Bach, but already, from such a young age, felt completely isolated from “the white and the Negro” community, and felt as if she was merely just a source of entertainment for others. In the year 1950, Nina applied to the Curtis Institute of Music in Philedelphia, but was rejected “I knew I was good enough, but they turned me down, and it took me about 6 months to realize it was because I was black.” Nina took up a Philadelphia bar job to support her family.

As Nina became well known amongst the Jazz and folk communities, she began to integrate her music with her experiences. Although popularity was being gained within dominant mainstream society, Nina was still seen merely as a performer and source of entertainment (often solely for white audiences). In 1961 she married a police officer, Andy, who became her manager and landed her performances in well-renowned circles. After playing in Corgnegie Hall in 1963, Nina Simone was an international success and very well recognized. Her personal life was complicated though, and far from shining. She was overworked, had a young baby, her husband was beating her, and above all, perhaps she wanted her songs to convey meaning, to “help my people”.

Nina’s music became an expression of a politically resistant minority group. It had the power to span across a diverse international demographic and affect many individuals, including white audiences. She had an ability to convey her soul; the pain and counter-hegemonic struggles she endured and use this to help expose the social and racial inequalities the black community were faced with. Along with other poets and writers, Nina addressed the autonomy of the black individual within such a fragmented social order through radical black activist movements.

Unfortunately for Nina though, consumers aren’t passive, and rebellion often lies in the production, distribution and reception of music. Nina couldn’t control the masses, the values and meanings constructed or taken from her political songs. Although the pattern of shifting demands is fluid, the issues revolving race were still stuck in a rigid hegemony; “the industry follows taste rather than forming them.” In reality, an artist often has to conform to an industry to maintain their success, and Nina was rebelling against the very institutions that reinforced racial hierarchies.

This raises a question: do the choices given to us (audiences and artists) by corporations and institutions actually represent the freedom of choice and cultural expression? Although we do have choices, there are often restrictions placed upon us, many of which are invisible.

Nina was pushed out of mainstream American society as her songs became more and more politically orientated, and her promoters didn’t book her as much because of her reputation. What was happening then, was a complex interplay between musicological, sociological and ideological forces. The meaning created by audiences was divided into two distinct responses: relatable, leading to emotional attachment, or intimidating, tapping into insecurities. These divides can lead us back to historical discourses regarding biological categorization of race which lead to “commonsense” racism as a way to make sense of others and know who to trust and who not to. Rather than an instilled, innate fear of “the other,” though, now an essentialist fear of losing a power battle that is so regimented in the social order, only contributing to the subordination and domination of racial hierarchies. The cultural purpose ascribed to meaning addresses issues such as where Nina’s songs fit in according to helping audiences construct their own sense of self, and what values, beliefs and views they believe she represented. As Nina pointed out, all she wanted was to create a sense of “pride in that identity. Got to make my songs more powerful to bring about that curiosity. Who am I? Where do I come from?”

The problem is, is that race is fluid, and the definition of race is constantly shifting. The rejection of Nina’s political songs and what she stood for, promoted rigid and static hierarchies within the social order, reinforcing a notion of clearly defining boundaries. This reinforces the importance of the media in reinforcing and structuring certain ideologies, hierarchies and perceived ‘truths’ in the social world. I would argue this created a sense of embarrassment, hopelessness and despair in Nina as her efforts to create change on a macro-level were not visibly met. Her political acts were seen as the problem, and she was labeled as mentally unfit, which reinforces white essentialist discourses. The real world effects of these discourses and ideologies are ongoing, and in Nina’s time, were especially dangerous and horrific.

Nina’s transgressive performances not only helped people from black communities, by giving them the confidence to question their identity and be proud of their ancestory, but also exposed white communities to real-life injustices and inequalities black communities faced as a result of pervasive racist hierarchies and ideologies within the white western dominant social order. Within her structured, and commercial role, Nina was able to contribute to a culture of resistance by defying social norms, challenging racist ideologies and becoming a voice for the minorities who often didn’t have one.

I’ll leave you with a quote from her daughter, something to think about: “The question is, how do we fit into the world that we’re around? Are we allowed to be exactly who we are? Was Nina Simone allowed to be exactly who she was?”

References:

Researching Rhythm and Blues, Arnold Shaw

Documentary: “What Happened, Miss Simone?” Liz Garbus