Born Eunice Waymon in Tryon, North Carolina, Nina Simone (1933-2003) began her musical life playing classical piano.
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By the age of twenty six, Simone had sung at New York City\'s venerable Town Hall and was on her way.
She turned to popular music and jazz but never abandoned her classical roots or her intense ambition.
A child prodigy, she wanted a career on the concert stage, but when the Curtis Institute of Music rejected her, the devastating disappointment compelled her to change direction.
Born Eunice Waymon in Tryon, North Carolina, Nina Simone (1933-2003) began her musical life playing classical piano