Ideas

Inspired by Lorraine Hansberry’s autobiographical play “To Be Young, Gifted, and Black,” singer Nina Simone released her song “Young, Gifted, and Black” in 1969. First performed at the Harlem Cultural Festival, the song became an anthem of the Black Power movement. The track was taken up and reinterpreted by artists ranging from Donny Hathaway to Aretha Franklin and, as it permeated collective consciousness, gave expression to something that dearly needed to be articulated: that Black youth ought to know that they are wellsprings of intelligence and capability, even when the world around them denies this.