Nina Simone was born Eunice Kathleen Waymon in Tryon, North Carolina. The sixth child of a Methodist preacher, Simone would find her musical roots in church, where she began playing the piano at 3 years old.
Simone's talent was evident early on and by age seven, she had the goal to become a concert pianist. She explained to Hit Parader: "I had been playing by ear and when I was seven a white woman heard me playing in a theatre and went to my mother with an offer to give me piano lessons. That's a very high goal to have, study eight hours a day to be a concert pianist. I didn't even think about it. I just got into it. I was very young. As I got older though I wanted a life of my own. The classical training was very demanding and thorough. It was a very sheltered existence. Even though I heard blues and gospel on the radio sometimes, it was always back to the piano and study and give recitals."
After high school, Simone studied a course in piano at New York's prestigious Julliard School of Music, but couldn't afford to stay.
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