'Nina' Simone is Resurrected Thanks to Zoe Saldana

In the spirit of making biopics of African American artists, it's easy to think that maybe Beyonce will follow in the footsteps of Katy Perry and release her own little story.  Betcha it would be called "Bootylicious".  Don't worry; I'm not headed in that direction.  I'm going towards something dramatically more sophisticated, poignant, and impacting.

Tinsel town has picked a strong actor to fill the shoes of the singer/songwriter, activist, and pianist Nina Simone.  According to The Hollywood Reporter, Zoe Saldana has signed on to play Simone in the biopic Nina. Written and directed by Cynthia Mort (The Brave One) production begins October of this year.  This role could be a step into the Oscar direction for Saldana, similar to the response of Jamie Foxx in Ray and Denzel Washington in Malcolm X.

If you're not familiar with Simone, get on YouTube.  Better yet, search for Lil Wayne "Misunderstood" and listen to the hauntingly, deep vocal sample.  You can't mistake it; the strength of a woman from South Carolina who advocated violence during the civil rights movement, who performed a cover of Billie Holidays' erie ballad "Strange Fruit", and expressed life through her passion.  Saldana is a perfect fit. 

Comments

[Black Woman]

Nina Simone is a pure Black woman who was proud of her beautiful features. Zoe is not suitable and most folks agree. Nina's daughter confirmed that this movie was not approved and the male manager was gay in real life. The movie which intends to portray a love relationship between a genius black artist and a gay manager is disrespectful. The blogger of this article is ignorant in regards to who Nina Simone is and what she truly stood for.