Black History Icons: Nina Simone Eunice Kathleen Waymon was born on February 21, 1933, and passed br on April 21, 2003. Here are five facts br to celebrate the life br of the iconic singer br and civil rights activist. 1. She learned br to play piano at br 3 years old. 2. She began protesting at the age of 12 when she refused to play at her church unless her parents could sit in the front of the hall instead of the back. 3. Simone performed at the famous Selma to Montgomery March. 4. She was called br “The High Priestess of Soul.” 5. Her music addressed br racial and social injustice, br like her iconic song, br “Mississippi Goddam.