Simone was born Eunice Kathleen Waymon on 21st February 1933 in Tryon, North Carolina, USA, one of eight children. Like a number of other black singers in the U.S., she was inspired as a child by Marian Anderson, and began singing at her local church, also showing great talent as a pianist. Her public debut, a piano recital, was made at the age of ten. Her parents, who had taken seats in the front row, were forced to move to the back of the hall to make way for white audience members. This incident contributed to her later involvement in the civil rights movement.
Simone's mother, Mary Kate Waymon (who lived into her late nineties) was a strict Methodist minister; her father, John Divine Waymon, was a handyman and sometime barber who suffered bouts of ill-health. Mrs Waymon worked as a maid, and her employer, hearing of Nina's talent, provided funds for piano lessons for the little girl. Subsequently, a local fund was set up to assist in Eunice's continued education.
At seventeen, Simone moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she taught piano and accompanied singers. She was able to begin studying piano at New York City's prestigious Juilliard School of Music but lack of funds meant that she was unable to fulfill her dream of becoming America's first Black classical pianist. She later had an interview to study piano at the Curtis Institute, but was rejected. Simone believed this rejection, which fueled her hatred of racism, was because she was black.
Simone turned to blues and jazz after getting her start at the Midtown Bar & Grill on Pacific Avenue in Atlantic City, taking the name Nina Simone in 1954; "Nina" was her boyfriend's nickname for her, and "Simone" was after the French actress Simone Signoret. She first came to public notice in 1959 with her wrenching rendition of George Gershwin's "I Loves You Porgy" (from Porgy and Bess), her only Top-Forty hit in the United States. This was soon followed by the single "My Baby Just Cares for Me" (this was also a hit in the 1980s in the United Kingdom when used for television advertisements for Chanel No 5 perfume).
Throughout the 1960s, Simone was involved in the civil rights movement and recorded a number of political songs, including "To Be Young, Gifted and Black" (later covered by Aretha Franklin and Donny Hathaway), "Backlash Blues", "Mississippi Goddam" (a response to the murder of Medgar Evers and the bombing of a church in Birmingham, Alabama killing four black children), "I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free", and Kurt Weill's "Pirate Jenny", from The Threepenny Opera, re-cast in a southern town.
In 1961, Simone recorded a version of the traditional song "House of the Rising Sun", which was then covered by folk-blues artist, Dave Van Ronk, and later recorded by Bob Dylan, where it was picked up by The Animals and became their signature hit. Other songs she is famous for include "I Put a Spell on You" (originally by Screamin' Jay Hawkins), The Beatles' "Here Comes the Sun", "Four Women", Bob Dylan's "I Shall Be Released", the Bee Gees' "To Love Somebody", and "Ain't Got No (I Got Life)". The latter, from the musical Hair, was her debut in the UK charts, reaching number two in 1968, and a remixed version of the recording by Groovefinder was a UK Top Thirty hit in 2006.
Broadway musicals also supplied several hits for Simone: "My Baby Just Cares for Me", "Love Me or Leave Me", "Feeling Good", and "Ne Me Quitte Pas". Also "You Can Have Him" on the LP Live at Town Hall recorded when she was twenty-six years old; at the end of this operatic performance, which displays her great skill as an actress as well as a musician, she whoops with joy. This single recording encapsulates her extraordinary power, wit, flexibility, sensuality and occasional menace.
In 1987 Nina experienced a resurgence in popularity when "My Baby Just Cares for Me", a track from her first Bethlehem Records album (1958) became a huge hit in the UK and elsewhere. Nina's versatility as an artist was evident in all her music, which often had a folk-music simplicity.
In a single concert, she moved easily from gospel-inspired tunes to blues and jazz and, in numbers like "For All We Know", to numbers infused with European classical stylings, and counterpoint fugues.
Throughout most of her career she was accompanied by percussionist Leopoldo Flemming and guitarist and musical director Al Shackman.
In 1971, Simone left the United States following disagreements with her agents, record labels, and the tax authorities, citing racism as the reason. She returned in 1978 and was arrested for tax evasion (she had withheld several years of income tax as a protest against the Vietnam War). She lived in various countries in the Caribbean, Africa, and Europe, continuing to perform into her 60s. In the 1980s, she performed regularly at Ronnie Scott's jazz club in London. In 1995, Simone reportedly shot and wounded her neighbour's son with an air pistol after his laughing disturbed her concentration.
She had a reputation in the music industry for being volatile and sometimes difficult to deal with, a characterization with which Simone strenuously took issue.
Though her onstage style could be somewhat haughty and aloof, in later years, Simone particularly seemed to enjoy engaging her adoring audiences by recounting sometimes humorous anecdotes related to her career and music and soliciting requests. Simone's regal bearing and commanding stage presence earned her the title the "High Priestess of Soul."
In 1993, she settled near Aix-en-Provence in the south of France. She had been ill with cancer for several years before she died on 21st April 2003 in her sleep at her home in Carry-le-Rouet.
Simone was the recipient of a Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 2000 for her song "I Loves You Porgy." She has also received fifteen Grammy Award nominations. On Human Kindness Day 1974 in Washington, D.C., more than 10,000 people paid tribute to Simone. Simone received two honorary degrees in music and humanities, from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and Malcolm X College. She preferred to be called "Dr. Nina Simone" after these honors were bestowed upon her. Only two days before her death, Simone was awarded an honorary degree by the Curtis Institute, the music school that had refused to admit her as a student at the beginning of her career.
In 2002, the city of Nijmegen (The Netherlands) named a street after her, the Nina Simonestraat. Simone lived in Nijmegen between 1988 and 1990.
Simone was inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame in 2009.
In 2010 a statue in her honor was erected in Trade Street, Tryon, North Carolina, her place of birth.
*Official site
Color Is a Beautiful Thing
Nina Simone Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
(Ooh oo-oo-ooh) Yeah
(Ooh oo-oo-ooh) Beautiful girl
Mmm
geunyeoneun naege jong-gyo, So I can call you shesus
niga namchini eomneungeol mirwo
nagateun pyeongbeomnameun niga mandeun gijune gyeolgyeok
So sseotji chin-guran gamyeon
ni yeopeseo nae bonsimeul sumgyeogamyeo
pyeonhan sai-ui beomjuro Sliding
dapdapame mae-ilbam ibure nallineun High kick
Damn neon mae-il lal yuhokae
ni pyojeongdeul hanahana ddaeme nan jajereul mothae
bogo-itjani meoriga bingbing
Pool full of beauty and I dive in it
Girl I'm so K.O.
sunsiggane nareul jeomryeonghan Napoleon
nan gyesok barabogiman hagetji
chin-guran dugeulja-e nal gamchunchaero
You're beautiful
cham gwaenchanchi anni uri dul
maennal ireoke ddo sangsang-eul hae You be with me, with me yeah
You're beautiful
hamggemyeon eoddeolji uri dul
maennal ireoke ddo sangsang-eul hae You be with me, with me yeah yeah
sijageun chum hagwoneseo, juwi somune nae nuneun neoreul neombwa
geurigo neol bwasseul ddae doreul jinaseo michyeo, geurae nae ma-eumeun geonban
aesseo Cool-han cheok
namjaran jonsimeul jikyeo an jwo nun-gilhanbeon
geunde Bowling cheoreom nimareun gulleowa nahante
jeonghwaki seo inneun naemamiran pineul ddak Strike hae
i-eojineun beonho gyohwane bamsae munjawa tonghwahae
neo-e daehan naui mameun Better than better
geunde neon eoddeoke saeng-gakae halji gami anwa neowa nae
sai, machim deullyeowa "namchini itdaeyo"
geurae yeojarangeo modu ddoggata machi Uniform Uniform
geurae jjaksarang-ideorado geu sun-ganmankeumeun Beautiful (Oh oh oh)
(Oh!)
You're beautiful
cham gwaenchanchi anni uri dul
maennal ireoke ddo sangsang-eul hae You be with me, with me yeah
You're beautiful
hamggemyeon eoddeolji uri dul
maennal ireoke ddo sangsang-eul hae You be with me, with me yeah yeah
(Yea-yea-yea-yeah) Yea-yeah!
(Yea-yea-yea-yeah) Ah-aha-ahhh!
(Yea-yea-yea-yeah) Aaaaaaye!
(Yea-yea-yea-yeah) You're my beautiful girl
The song "Beautiful" by BTS is a love letter to a girl who is depicted as a goddess, a deity, a symbol of perfection. The lyrics are filled with references to religion, mythology and sports, all of which are presented as inadequate metaphors to describe the girl's beauty. The girl is called "shesus" (a portmanteau of she and Jesus), and the singer wishes he could call her that without offending anyone. The girl is also compared to a bowling ball, a pine tree, a high kick, and a strike, all of which are attempts at capturing her grace, her strength, and her precision. The singer is simultaneously in awe of the girl and aware of his own inadequacy. He is like Napoleon, made tiny and insignificant by the vastness of his love for her. He is like a beginner dancer, taking classes just to catch a glimpse of her. He is like a bad bowler, hoping to score a few points with her. Despite all this, he is confident in his love, and invites the girl to be with him, to imagine a future together where they can admire each other's beauty as equals.
The song is essentially a celebration of beauty, and the power it has over us. The girl is beautiful, but so is the singer, and so are we all. And yet, beauty is not just a superficial attribute, but a complex and multifaceted concept that encompasses art, spirituality, health, and personality. The song invites us to embrace our own beauty, and to recognize it in others, without reservations or judgments. It is a reminder that we are all worthy of love, and that love is the most beautiful thing of all.
Line by Line Meaning
geunyeoneun naege jong-gyo, So I can call you shesus
She is my religion, so I can call her my savior
niga namchini eomneungeol mirwo
I am amazed by your beauty
bwasseulddae mame dureun cheolbyeok
The moment I saw you, my heart raced
nagateun pyeongbeomnameun niga mandeun gijune gyeolgyeok
The beautiful features you possess is a masterpiece
So sseotji chin-guran gamyeon
The moment I glanced at you
ni yeopeseo nae bonsimeul sumgyeogamyeo
I want to breathe by your side
pyeonhan sai-ui beomjuro Sliding
Sliding into the perfect moment
dapdapame mae-ilbam ibure nallineun High kick
Kicking high into the night sky
Damn neon mae-il lal yuhokae
Damn, you are beautiful every day
ni pyojeongdeul hanahana ddaeme nan jajereul mothae
I am speechless because of every aspect of your appearance
bogo-itjani meoriga bingbing
Seeing you makes my mind glow
Pool full of beauty and I dive in it
You are surrounded by beauty and I want to immerse myself in it
Girl I'm so K.O.
You knock me out, girl
sunsiggane nareul jeomryeonghan Napoleon
I am like Napoleon, lost in time
nan gyesok barabogiman hagetji
I can't stop looking at you
chin-guran dugeulja-e nal gamchunchaero
Hold me in your arms the moment I look at you
You're beautiful
You are stunning
cham gwaenchanchi anni uri dul
Truly, we are both beautiful
maennal ireoke ddo sangsang-eul hae You be with me, with me yeah
Every day, I imagine you being with me, always
hamggemyeon eoddeolji uri dul
Together, what can't we do?
sijageun chum hagwoneseo, juwi somune nae nuneun neoreul neombwa
From the first dance class, I fixed my eyes on you
geurigo neol bwasseul ddae doreul jinaseo michyeo, geurae nae ma-eumeun geonban
And when I saw you again, my heart skipped a beat
aesseo Cool-han cheok
I put on a cool act
namjaran jonsimeul jikyeo an jwo nun-gilhanbeon
Ignoring the male gaze
geunde Bowling cheoreom nimareun gulleowa nahante
But like in bowling, I'm striking out
jeonghwaki seo inneun naemamiran pineul ddak Strike hae
My heart that is held hostage by your image strikes like lightning
i-eojineun beonho gyohwane bamsae munjawa tonghwahae
This distance (between us) is a problem and we need to communicate and reconcile
neo-e daehan naui mameun Better than better
My heart for you is better than better
geunde neon eoddeoke saeng-gakae halji gami anwa neowa nae
However, you and I can't imagine anything else
sai, machim deullyeowa "namchini itdaeyo"
Yes, I hear it all the time "you're handsome"
geurae yeojarangeo modu ddoggata machi Uniform Uniform
Yes, all the girls are like puppies, all in a uniform uniform
geurae jjaksarang-ideorado geu sun-ganmankeumeun Beautiful (Oh oh oh)
Yes, even a moment of puppy love is beautiful (Oh oh oh)
You're my beautiful girl
You are my stunning girl
Contributed by Nicholas W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@Youbarkimeow
She was ahead of her times a genius which is a plus but also a threat to others who feared her power may she rest in peace,a true Earth 👼
@makhukhu_
I mean, who does that? One minute of pure energy just like that 🥺
@Youbarkimeow
This gave me a happy tingling feeling of pure joy whilst listening and relayed it several times much needed stay safe everyone 🙏
@PurpleDivaDesigns
Every time I hear this song it makes me smile! Color IS a beautiful thing! She is still the High Priestess of Soul! So glad to hear new music from this legend. So need her music during this time in the world! 👸🏽✊🏽✌🏽💜
@KinkyJinxy
I can’t wait to have kids and sing this to them ❤️
@thatomello5855
The gift that keeps on giving, what a blessing
@hellokitgurl4life
I thought I would never hear a Nina Simone song I had never heard before. So exciting!
@artinheart8570
What an elegance!! 💙
@elizabethallen7464
Love this so much.
@8sun52
NS. She's one of my favorites. A treasure...