Lisa Simone Kelly (born Lisa Celeste Stroud, September 12, 1962) is an American singer, composer and actress, known for her work on and off Broadway, in '' Rent'', ''

The Lion King ''The Lion King'' is a 1994 American animated musical drama film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The 32nd Disney animated feature film and the fifth produced during the Disney Renaissance ...

'', ''

Aida ''Aida'' (or ''Aïda'', ) is an 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 Decemb ...

'', and '' Les Miserables''. She is the only child of the late musician and civil rights activist

Nina Simone Eunice Kathleen Waymon (February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003), known professionally as Nina Simone (), was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, and civil rights activist. Her music spanned styles including classical, folk, gospel, blu ...

from her marriage to police detective Andrew Stroud and is the executive producer of the

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fi ...

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 fi ...

'' Simone's albums include ''Simone on Simone'', ''All is Well'', ''My World'', and ''Live at the Edge''.

Biography

As a child, Simone often lived with relatives and friends due to her mother's busy touring schedule, her parents' tempestuous marriage, as well as Nina's mental health problems. Later in life, Simone alleged that her mother was emotionally and physically abusive, driving her to the point of contemplating suicide 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 Aerial warfare, air military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part ...

for over 10 years as an engineering assistant stationed at Davis Monthan in

Tucson, Arizona , "(at the) base of the black ill , nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town" , image_map = , mapsize = 260px , map_caption = Interactive map ...

, Osan Airbase in South Korea, and Rhein Main Air Base in

Frankfurt, Germany Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its ...

. She is a veteran of the

Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a Coalition of the Gulf War, 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Ba'athist Iraq, ...

. After being honorably discharged, Simone sang background for various European artists and was part of the Spanish artist

Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, better known as Raphael (; or ; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. His work is admired for its clarity of form, ease of composition, and visual a ...

's touring chorus. Simone's theatrical stage debut was in a national tour of the Andrew Lloyd Webber rock musical '' Jesus Christ Superstar'', 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 ''

'' and Nala in ''

''. Later that year, Simone performed the lead role of Mimi Marquez in ''Rents 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 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), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

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 known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

musical ''

''. 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 amphitheatre, 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 ...

Theater in

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

in the summer of 2006. In August 2007, she played Fantine in ''

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' ( , ) is a French historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. In the English-speaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its origin ...

'' 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'' is an American overnight radio talk show hosted by Larry King which was broadcast nationally over the Mutual Broadcasting System from January 1978 to May 1994. A typical show consisted of King interviewing a guest, then t ...

'', and the ''

Tyra Banks Show ''The Tyra Banks Show'', also known as and shortened to ''Tyra'' or ''The Tyra Show'', was an American talk show hosted by Tyra Banks that aired from 2005 to 2010. While Banks's show covered a variety of topics, there was a sensationalized focus ...

''. 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 international news television network based in Paris. Its channels broadcast in French, English, Arabic, and Spanish and are aimed at the overseas market. Based in the Paris suburb of Issy-les-Mo ...

program ''A l'Affiche'' on April 5, 2016."À L'affiche ! - Lisa Simone, digne héritière de la diva soul"
rePlay.fr.

References

External links

Official Lisa Simone website

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