See the Nina Simone Documentary

Nina Simone had many roles during her life, some glamorous, some that embittered her and may have driven her mad. However you remember her, see the documentary, "What Happened, Miss Simone?" on Netflix if you get as chance.

In the segregated South, it was two white women who recognized and fostered her talent early on, setting up one of the first ironies of her life. Her musical education, learning and practicing classic works, segregated her from other children of her race. She rose in recognition of her talent, but was denied admission to the music school she wanted to attend. When the private funding ran out, she turned to playing in bars to earn money and had to change her name to avoid shaming her family. A black man who became her protector later beat her and practically enslaved her to a career that glittered on the outside but left her damaged on the inside.

She freed herself through activism and found her voice in battle anthems. But her place in the front line of the struggle for freedom from segregation also seemed to put her on the precipice of personal violence. She took out her own anger on her daughter with beatings. Things fell apart and she left the country.

As her world broadened and she kept company with her creative peers, her inner demons remained unappeased, and she lashed out even at her admirers. Her frowning face projected puzzlement at where she was and where she was going. After the applause and acclaim, she was alone with her anger.

This is a film that will call out from viewers emotions related to their own experiences with power and the lack of it. See it if you can.

--Bernice