Lennox embarked on a solo career in 1992 with her debut album, Diva, which produced several hit singles including "Why" and "Walking on Broken Glass". The same year, she performed "Love Song for a Vampire" for Bram Stoker's Dracula. Her 1995 studio album, Medusa, includes cover versions of songs such as "No More "I Love You's"'" and "A Whiter Shade of Pale". To date, she has released six solo studio albums and a compilation album, The Annie Lennox Collection (2009). With eight Brit Awards, which includes being named Best British Female Artist a record six times, Lennox has been named the "Brits Champion of Champions". She has also collected four Grammy Awards and an MTV Video Music Award. In 2002, Lennox received a Billboard Century Award; the highest accolade from Billboard. In 2004, she received the Golden Globe and the Academy Award for Best Original Song for "Into the West", written for the soundtrack to the feature film The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.
Lennox's vocal range is contralto. She has been named "The Greatest White Soul Singer Alive" by VH1 and one of The 100 Greatest Singers of All Time by Rolling Stone. In 2012, she was rated No. 22 on VH1's 100 Greatest Women in Music. In June 2013 the Official Charts Company called her "the most successful female British artist in UK music history". As of June 2008, including her work with Eurythmics, Lennox had sold over 80 million records worldwide. As part of a one-hour symphony of British Music, Lennox performed "Little Bird" during the 2012 Summer Olympics closing ceremony in London. At the 2015 Ivor Novello Awards, Lennox was made a fellow of the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors (The Ivors Academy), the first woman to receive the honour. Lennox and her Eurythmics partner Dave Stewart were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2020, and the duo were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2022.
In addition to her career as a musician, Lennox is also a political and social activist, raising money and awareness for HIV/AIDS as it affects women and children in Africa. She founded the Sing campaign in 2007 and founded a women's empowerment charity called The Circle in 2008. In 2011, Lennox was appointed an OBE by Queen Elizabeth II for her "tireless charity campaigns and championing of humanitarian causes". On 4 June 2012, she performed at the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Concert in front of Buckingham Palace. In 2017, Lennox was appointed Glasgow Caledonian University's first female chancellor.
Studio albums
Diva (1992)
Medusa (1995)
Bare (2003)
Songs of Mass Destruction (2007)
A Christmas Cornucopia (2010)
Nostalgia (2014)
Strange Fruit
Annie Lennox Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Blood on the leaves and blood at the roots
Black bodies swingin' in the Southern breeze
Strange fruit hangin' from the poplar trees
Pastoral scene of the gallant South
The bulgin' eyes and the twisted mouth
Scent of magnolias sweet and fresh
Here is a fruit for the crows to pluck
For the rain to gather, for the wind to suck
For the sun to rot, for the tree to drop
Here is a strange and bitter crop
Southern trees bear a strange fruit
Blood on the leaves and blood at the roots
Black bodies swingin' in the Southern breeze
Strange fruit hangin' from the poplar trees
The lyrics of Annie Lennox's song, Strange Fruit, paint a vivid picture of the gruesome reality of lynching in the Southern United States. The "strange fruit" hanging from the trees refers to the bodies of black men, women, and children who were lynched by white mobs. The reference to the "Southern trees" highlights the fact that this was a common occurrence in the South, and the "blood on the leaves" and "blood at the roots" highlights the bloodshed and deep roots of racism that enabled this violence.
The "pastoral scene" described in the second verse is a stark contrast to the horror of the lynching. The "gallant South" is a reference to the glorification of the Confederacy and the romanticization of the antebellum South. The juxtaposition of this idyllic picture with the description of the hanging bodies is meant to jolt the listener and call attention to this harsh reality.
The final verse is a haunting conclusion to the song. The description of the fruit as "strange and bitter" emphasizes the unnatural and sickening nature of the violence that was perpetrated against black people. The fact that this "fruit" is being offered up to animals and natural processes like rain and wind highlights the idea that white society saw black people as less than human and unworthy of the dignity of a proper burial.
Line by Line Meaning
Southern trees bear a strange fruit
The trees in the Southern region bear a fruit that is different from others in appearance and meaning
Blood on the leaves and blood at the roots
The fruit that grows on these trees are covered in blood highlights, which means there's a history of violence and hate in this place
Black bodies swingin' in the Southern breeze
In the region, black people were hanged in the open from trees, and their bodies dangle in the wind
Strange fruit hangin' from the poplar trees
The fruit that grows on the poplar trees is strange - it symbolizes the lynching and suffering of Black people in the Southern region
Pastoral scene of the gallant South
The pastoral scene of the Southern region is a romanticized image of a grand and courageous place.
The bulgin' eyes and the twisted mouth
The twisted faces and eyes of Black people who have been hanged are a common sight in the Southern region.
Scent of magnolias sweet and fresh
The smell of magnolias is fresh and pleasing to the senses.
Then the sudden smell of burnin' flesh
However, the odor of burning flesh in the same area exposes the violence and hate that underpins what seems like a grand and peaceful society.
Here is a fruit for the crows to pluck
The fruit that grows on these trees is not for humans to eat, but instead for birds to devour.
For the rain to gather, for the wind to suck
The fruit is destined to rot and decay as inaccessible because it is out of reach for humans.
For the sun to rot, for the tree to drop
The fruit is prone to rotting due to exposure to the sun and will eventually fall from the tree.
Here is a strange and bitter crop
The fruit found in the Southern region is strange, and the story behind it is bitter, tainted with hatred, and violence.
Southern trees bear a strange fruit
The Southern trees bear a fruit that bears a unique history that is embedded with memories of hate, violence, and injustice.
Blood on the leaves and blood at the roots
The sight of fruit with blood highlights signifies that there has been death, destruction, and bloodshed in the region.
Black bodies swingin' in the Southern breeze
The sight of hanging Black bodies is not only gruesome, but a reminder of the deep-rooted racism and bigotry that has plagued the Southern region.
Strange fruit hangin' from the poplar trees
The hanging fruit has a strong symbolic representation of the suffering and oppression of the Black community in the Southern region.
Lyrics © MUSIC SALES CORPORATION, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Lewis Allen
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
ahmad SG
Southern trees bear strange fruit
Blood on the leaves and blood at the root
Black bodies swinging in the southern breeze
Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees
Pastoral scene of the gallant south
The bulging eyes and the twisted mouth
Scent of magnolias, sweet and fresh
Then the sudden smell of burning flesh
Here is fruit for the crows to pluck
For the rain to gather, for the wind to suck
For the sun to rot, for the trees to drop
Here is a strange and bitter crop
Gareth Harris
LYRICS: Strange Fruit
Southern trees bear strange fruit
Blood on the leaves
Blood at the root
Black bodies swinging in the southern breeze
Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees
Pastoral scene of the gallant south
The bulging eyes and the twisted mouth
The scent of magnolia sweet and fresh
Then the sudden smell of burning flesh
Here is a fruit for the crows to pluck
for the rain to gather
for the wind to suck
for the sun to rot
for the tree to drop
Here is a strange and bitter crop
-- Composed by Abel Meeropol (aka Lewis Allan)
Ray B
As a person from lower caste community in India, i can relate so much to black community because our people face the same struggles even today, this type of incidents, discrimination (honor killings) still happen in rural(66%) areas and people act like discrimination doesn't exist.. especially people in cities act like it's all sunshine and roses everywhere just because they see it that way from where they are.
My people still enter the gutter, sewages without any proper protection and government doesn't give them proper equipment because they dont think their life is that important.. their families also face health problems because of that..
A lower caste person was killed in because he was riding a horse on his wedding day.. sickens me 😓
this is just few of the problems..
Just want all this to end.
p.s Am not saying all upper caste/white people are bad I have many friends and they are nice its just some percentage who have sick mentality of discrimination
links:
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.ndtv.com/india-news/dalit-man-killed-in-gujarat-for-riding-horse-says-police-1830867%3famp=1&akamai-rum=off
https://www.indiatimes.com/news/india/11-major-incidents-of-violence-against-dalits-which-show-how-badly-we-treat-them-258944.html
Raven Kemper
Southern trees
Bearing strange fruit
Blood on the leaves
And blood at the roots
Black bodies
Swinging in the southern breeze
Strange fruit hangin'
From the poplar trees
Pastoral scene
Of the gallant south
Them big bulging eyes
And the twisted mouth
Scent of magnolia
Clean and fresh
Then the sudden smell
Of burnin' flesh
Here is a fruit
For the crows to pluck
For the rain to gather
For the wind to suck
For the sun to rot
For the leaves to drop
Here is
Strange and bitter crop
Activity Grrrl
"I find racism very painful. Even when I was a kid, I couldn´t abide that somebody would be stigmatized and separated. That song is a very courageous piece of art. It silenced people. It shamed people. It took it out from the shadows and said: Look, this is what´s happening and you know it´s happenning." Annie Lennox
Jody Moreno-Nind
Do you where this quote is from ??
veronica Alleyne
& the gov't. attempted to get Billie to stop singing this song but, she wouldn't quit so they then went after her anyway
veronica Alleyne
& still republicans found it appropriate to vote against an anti-lynching law which tells me that the only reason for keeping racism around is because they enjoy it
KremIsis
If I didn't read her name I would have never recognized her. Her voice has deepened. Really stunning, I never heard a white person singing this song so right. She puts something more than vocal range. She puts her heart on it.
ProwlingTiger1
It might just be me but I've noticed that Annie does actually deepen her voice on songs she obviously feels needs to be sung deeply.
She is very talented and has got quite the range in her voice- she can vary it as she needs and wants to, I think sometimes she doesn't get enough credit for that, especially as many singers seam to lose the power in their voice or even the ability to sing all together as they get older but she has not only kept her voice as great as from the start but she has even perfected it and got better and better over time, a mark of true genius talent.
adam84144
I was the same way! I saw the name and thought "Huh..I know her from somewhere." Then "Man! What a powerhouse!" It wasn't until I did a search that I remembered where I knew the name from. I had no idea she had so much grit and power behind her.
Emerald Williams
@ProwlingTiger1 I don’t think she perfected it at all in my opinion the original will always be the best as she saw things and felt things Annie hasn’t lived through so her version wouldn’t be as real or as heart felt, it’s good just no where near as good as the original.
veronica Alleyne
that's a natural occurance as you age it happens to all women even those who don't sing
KremIsis
@veronica Alleyne kind of hope you're right, just today I noticed how my mom's voice still is very high-pitched, and I took after her... I wouldn't mind a deeper voice at all.