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To be young, gifted and black!

Nina Simone

To most white people, jazz means black and jazz means dirt, and that’s not what I play. I play black classical music.
NINA SIMONE

Music Myself People Play
Jazz is not just music, it’s a way of life, it’s a way of being, a way of thinking the new inventive phrases we make up to describe things – all that to me is jazz just as much as the music we play.
NINA SIMONE

Description Invention Music Myself Play Thinking Way
My love is like the wind and wild is the wind. Give me more than one caress, satisfy my hungriness. Let the wind blow through your heart for wild is the wind.
NINA SIMONE

Blow Heart Love Myself Satisfaction Wild Wind
Once I understood Bach’s music, I wanted to be a concert pianist. Bach made me dedicate my life to music, and it was that teacher who introduced me to his world.
NINA SIMONE

Dedication Introduction Music Myself Teacher World
I play piano, by ear. Yes, I write songs and good ones.
NINA SIMONE

Instrument Myself Writing
You can’t help it. An artist’s duty, as far as I’m concerned, is to reflect the times.
NINA SIMONE

Artist Help Reflection Time
To be young, gifted and black!
NINA SIMONE

Black One Liner Young
It is difficult to retain your standards with the pressure of trying to make money, which always has its rules. It’s hard to walk the tightrope of doing what you think is your best and making money at it.
NINA SIMONE

Difficult Hard Money Rule Standard Yourself
You don’t have to live next to me / Just give me my equality.
NINA SIMONE

Equality Live Yourself
I love the classics but there are many new ideas to be made into reality. I’d rather be concerned with my own thing. There are many masters of classical piano so I’ll leave it to them.
NINA SIMONE

Classics Love Master Myself
I think the rich are too rich and the poor are too poor. I don’t think the black people are going to rise at all; I think most of them are going to die.
NINA SIMONE

Death Poor Rich Rise Thinking
I had spent many years pursuing excellence, because that is what classical music is all about… Now it was dedicated to freedom, and that was far more important.
NINA SIMONE

Dedication Excellence Freedom Music Myself Pursue
I think if I were over there in America, protest music would be more important. But I’m not going.
NINA SIMONE

Important Music Myself Thinking
Jazz is not just music, it’s a way of life, it’s a way of being, a way of thinking.
NINA SIMONE

Life Music Thinking Way
What is love but a prelude to sorrow with heartache ahead for your goal.
NINA SIMONE

Goal Love Sorrow Yourself
Every day has its emotional difficulties. I miss my mother whether I’m singing her music or not.
NINA SIMONE

Day Difficult Emotional Music Myself

To be young, gifted and black!

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To be young, gifted and black!

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