Nina Simone, musician
Some readers might wonder why a journal that devotes itself to what we have defined as the "Mountain South" would feature an internationally known artist like Nina Simone. The answer is that Simone, born Eunice Kathleen Waymon, was raised the sixth child of a preacher in the Western North Carolina town of Tryon. Like many Appalachians, she had complicated feelings about her place of birth, but she used her upbringing to fill her songs with emotional knowledge about family, acceptance, individuality, and activism.
In this tune, one of her more famous songs, Simone showcases her incredible strength, defiance, and ferocity—true traits of the people of the region that we strive to highlight and represent in all of its complexity and diversity. Learn more about Nina Simone.
(2013)
Nina Simone sings "Mississippi Goddam" in July, 1965.
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