The song with which Nina Simone shaped the civil rights era
(Credits: Far Out / Jean-Pierre Leloir)
It’s almost impossible to capture the entire music scene of the 1960s in one comprehensive picture. This period was marked by a flood of incredible, revolutionary artists who changed the face of popular music and culture forever. It was an era of change both politically and culturally, and so it’s no surprise that many artists attempted to capture the essence of this political and social change. Some bold attempts were made, addressing everything from the Vietnam War to the fight for civil rights in America, but few could capture the zeitgeist of the time quite like Nina Simone.
Simone studied classical music from a young age and was drawn into the vibrant world of jazz in the 1950s. She played piano in various venues and gained a reputation for her unique and impressive playing. Simone explored a wide range of themes and genres throughout her music career. After the release of the jazz-centered Little Girl Blue In 1959, Simone’s management and record label pushed the songwriter away from profound jazz and towards the commercialization of pop.
The pianist was openly frustrated by the apparent need to make pop music, but not even the enormous authority of the music industry could tame Nina Simone’s incredible voice. Like many black creatives in the 1960s, Simone was deeply rooted in the civil rights movement and associated with activists such as Malcolm X and Martin Luther King.
During this time, Simone successfully used her art and music as a means of protest and raising awareness for civil rights. This change in songwriting direction may not have pleased record bosses, but Simone managed to write some of the greatest social protest anthems of all time.
Simone launched this bold new era of her discography with the stunning single “Mississippi Goddam” in response to a series of racially motivated murders in Mississippi and the wider American South. The songwriter herself referred to the song as her “first civil rights song”, and over the next few years the song became a definitive anthem of the 1960s civil rights movement. Simone had much more to say on the subject, however, and wrote many more now-iconic songs based on her anger at the harsh treatment of black Americans.
Of these tracks, “To Be Young, Gifted, and Black” is perhaps the most notable. As a counterpoint to the oppression and prejudice that black people faced on a daily basis in the United States at the time, Simone wanted to celebrate herself and black excellence. After its release in 1970, the song took on a life of its own, being covered by everyone from Aretha Franklin to Trojan Records icons Bob and Marcia, and contributing to black liberation worldwide.
With these defiant civil rights anthems and songs like “Ain’t Got No, I Got Life,” Simone brought attention to the plight of black Americans living in a prejudiced society and offered a source of joy and pride to those fighting for civil rights. “To Be Young, Gifted, and Black” remains a vital song to this day. Jazz singer Abbey Lincoln once said, “To really understand the ’60s, you had to hear Nina,” and when it comes to the political landscape of the United States, that statement is certainly hard to argue with.
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