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Lisa Simone Kelly (born Lisa Celeste Stroud; September 12, 1962) is an American singer, composer and actress, known for her work both on Broadway and
off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...
, in '' Rent'', ''
The Lion King ''The Lion King'' is a 1994 American animated musical coming-of-age drama film directed by Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff, produced by Don Hahn, and written by Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts, and Linda Woolverton. Produced by Walt Disney ...
'', ''
Aida ''Aida'' (or ''Aïda'', ) is a tragic opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. Set in the Old Kingdom of Egypt, it was commissioned by Cairo's Khedivial Opera House and had its première there on 24 De ...
'', and '' Les Miserables''. She is the only child of musician and civil rights activist
Nina Simone Nina Simone ( ; born Eunice Kathleen Waymon; February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003) was an American singer, pianist, songwriter, and civil rights activist. Her music spanned styles including classical, folk, gospel, blues, jazz, R&B, and po ...
from her marriage to police officer Andrew Stroud. She served as the executive producer of the
Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...
documentary ''
What Happened, Miss Simone? ''What Happened, Miss Simone?'' is a 2015 American biographical documentary film about Nina Simone directed by Liz Garbus. The film opened the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. The screening was followed by a tribute performance by John Legend. The ...
'' (2015), which documented the personal life of her family and her mother. Simone's work as a musician includes the albums ''Simone on Simone'', ''All is Well'', ''My World'', and ''Live at the Edge''.


Biography

Lisa Simone Kelly was born on September 12, 1962, the only daughter of musician and civil rights activist
Nina Simone Nina Simone ( ; born Eunice Kathleen Waymon; February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003) was an American singer, pianist, songwriter, and civil rights activist. Her music spanned styles including classical, folk, gospel, blues, jazz, R&B, and po ...
and her second husband Andrew Stroud, a police officer. Growing up, she often lived with relatives and friends due to her mother's busy touring schedule, her parents’ tempestuous marriage, as well as mother's mental health problems. In the 1970s, she lived with her mother in Switzerland, where she attended the International School of Geneva. Later in life, Simone alleged that her mother was emotionally and physically abusive, driving her to the point of contemplating
suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...
until finally going to New York to live with her father. As a young adult, Simone served in the
United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...
for more than 10 years as an engineering assistant stationed at Davis Monthan in
Tucson, Arizona Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...
, Osan Airbase in South Korea, and Rhein Main Air Base in
Frankfurt, Germany Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the foreland of the Taunus on its namesake Main, it forms a contin ...
. She is a veteran of the
Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...
. After being honorably discharged, Simone sang background for various European artists and was part of the Spanish artist
Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino (; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), now generally known in English as Raphael ( , ), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. List of paintings by Raphael, His work is admired for its cl ...
's touring chorus. Simone's theatrical stage debut was in a national tour of the
Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948) is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End theatre, West End and on Broadway theatre, Broad ...
rock musical ''
Jesus Christ Superstar ''Jesus Christ Superstar'' is a sung-through rock opera with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice. Loosely based on the Life of Jesus in the New Testament, Gospels' accounts of Passion of Jesus, the Passion, the work interprets ...
'', as a Soul Sister, Simon, and understudy for Mary. In 1996, she continued her career as a swing and female understudy in the original Broadway production of '' Rent'' at which time she also performed the roles of Aida in Disney's ''
Aida ''Aida'' (or ''Aïda'', ) is a tragic opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. Set in the Old Kingdom of Egypt, it was commissioned by Cairo's Khedivial Opera House and had its première there on 24 De ...
'' and
Nala Nala () is a legendary king of ancient Nishadha kingdom and the central protagonist of the '' Nalopakhyana'', a sub-narrative within the Indian epic '' Mahabharata'', found in its third book, '' Vana Parva'' (Book of the Forest). He is renown ...
in ''
The Lion King ''The Lion King'' is a 1994 American animated musical coming-of-age drama film directed by Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff, produced by Don Hahn, and written by Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts, and Linda Woolverton. Produced by Walt Disney ...
''. Later that year, Simone performed the lead role of Mimi Marquez in ''Rent''s first national tour, from November 1996 to April 1998. She was nominated for both a Helen Hayes Award and a Jefferson Award for her performances. Starting in 1998, Simone took a hiatus from the theatre, during which she toured and recorded two albums with the
acid jazz Acid jazz (also known as club jazz, psychedelic jazz, or groove jazz) is a music genre that combines elements of funk, soul music, soul, and hip hop music, hip hop, as well as jazz and disco. Acid jazz originated in clubs in London during the 1 ...
band Liquid Soul as a featured vocalist. Along with the rest of the band, she was nominated for a
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...
for their 2000 album '' Here's the Deal''. Simone then returned to the Broadway stage in the title role of the
Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...
musical ''
Aida ''Aida'' (or ''Aïda'', ) is a tragic opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. Set in the Old Kingdom of Egypt, it was commissioned by Cairo's Khedivial Opera House and had its première there on 24 De ...
''. She performed the role from January 29, 2002, until June 15, 2003. She won the National Theatre Award for Best Actress in a Musicalvoted on by fansfor her performances on Aida's First National Tour, before returning to Broadway's Palace Theatre. She reprised this role for a short time at
The Muny The St. Louis Municipal Opera Theatre (commonly known as The Muny) is an amphitheater located in St. Louis, Missouri. The theatre seats 11,000 people with about 1,500 free seats in the last nine rows that are available on a first come, first s ...
Theater in
St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...
in the summer of 2006. In August 2007, she played
Fantine Fantine (French pronunciation: ) is a fictional character in Victor Hugo's 1862 novel ''Les Misérables''. She is a young ''Grisette (person), grisette'' in Paris who is impregnated by a rich student. After he abandons her, she is forced to look ...
in ''
Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' (, ) is a 19th-century French literature, French Epic (genre), epic historical fiction, historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published on 31 March 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. '' ...
'' at The Muny. Simone has released five solo albums: ''Simone on Simone,'' ''All Is Well'', ''Lisa Simone with Tromsø Big Band Live at the Edge'', ''My World'', and ''In Need of Love''. Simone is married to Robert Kelly. Simone has appeared on '' Psychic Kids'', the ''
Larry King Show ''The Larry King Show'' was an American overnight radio talk show hosted by Larry King. It was broadcast nationally over the Mutual Broadcasting System from January 1978 to May 1994. A typical program consisted of King interviewing a guest, the ...
'', and the '' Tyra Banks Show''. Simone is also fluent in French, having been partly raised in Switzerland. She was featured on the
France 24 France 24 ( in French) is a French state-owned publicly funded international news television network based in Paris. Its channels, broadcast in French, English, Arabic and Spanish, are aimed at the overseas market. Based in the Paris suburb ...
program ''A l'Affiche'' on April 5, 2016."À L'affiche ! - Lisa Simone, digne héritière de la diva soul"
rePlay.fr, April 5, 2016.


References


External links


Official Lisa Simone website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Simone, Lisa Living people 1962 births 20th-century American actresses 20th-century American singers 20th-century American women singers 21st-century American actresses 21st-century American singers 21st-century American women singers Acid jazz musicians American contemporary R&B singers American folk singers American jazz singers American musical theatre actresses American neo soul singers American women jazz singers Liquid Soul members Nina Simone United States Air Force airmen