Legendary performer Nina Simone sang a mix of jazz, blues and folk music in the 1950s and ’60s, later enjoying a career resurgence in the ’80s. A staunch Civil Rights activist, she was known for tunes like “Mississippi Goddam,” “Young, Gifted and Black” and “Four Women,” among many others. Synopsis Born on February 21, 1933, in Tryon, North Carolina, Nina Simone studied classical piano at … Continue reading Profile: Nina Simone
Audre Lorde wrote the poetry collections From a Land Where Other People Live (1973) and The Black Unicorn (1978), as well as memoirs like A Burst of Light (1988). Synopsis Born February 18, 1934, Audre Lorde attended Hunter College and Columbia University and was a librarian for several years before publishing her first volume of poetry, First Cities, in 1968. More successful collections followed, including … Continue reading Profile: Audre Lorde
Toni Morrison is a Nobel Prize- and Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist. Among her best known novels are ‘The Bluest Eye,’ ‘Song of Solomon,’ ‘Beloved’ and ‘A Mercy.’ Who Is Toni Morrison? Born on February 18, 1931, in Lorain, Ohio, Toni Morrison is a Nobel Prize- and Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist, editor and professor. Her novels are known for their epic themes, exquisite language and richly detailed … Continue reading Profile: Toni Morrison
Amiri Baraka is an African-American poet, activist and scholar. He was an influential black nationalist and later became a Marxist. Synopsis Amiri Baraka (formerly LeRoi Jones) was born in Newark, New Jersey, on October 7, 1934. After three years in the U.S. Air Force, Jones joined the Beat movement in Greenwich Village. After the assassination of Malcolm X, he took the name Amiri Baraka and … Continue reading Profile: Amiri Baraka
Black Art Story 