Back as a strong woman: Nina Simone's daughter Lisa
08/07/2016
written by Christoph Soltmannowski
Lisa Simone fled Geneva as a teenager. Now, for a concert in Montreux, she is returning to the place where she suffered under her violent mother.
It wasn't easy being the daughter of a manic-depressive jazz diva," says Lisa Simone (53). In 1976, she came to Lake Geneva as a 13-year-old with her mother Nina Simone (1933-2003) and attended the private school La Châtaigneraie.
The school was recommended by a friend of her mother's, whom Lisa only called "Uncle Claude" - none other than Claude Nobs, the founder of the Montreux Festival, who died in 2013. As a teenager, Lisa fled from her mother's beatings to her father in New York.
Lisa Simone goes to the Gulf War as an aircraft mechanic
"It took me a long time to find myself," says Lisa Simone today. "I've lived several lives - one day I'll write a book about it." She first sought her fortune in the army and went to Iraq as an aircraft mechanic. "Yes, I'm a veteran of the First Gulf War," she says. Simone is later stationed in Frankfurt (Germany) for the Air Force.
During the week she is a soldier, at the weekend she performs in clubs. "Music was always my thing," she says. "Even as a little girl, I hummed melodies to my mother." She just thought: "Do you want to end up as stupid as me when you grow up?" Lisa also writes about this in the Montreux Jazz anniversary book.
In 1993, she left the army and became a musical actress on Broadway. In 2009, she performs for a tribute to her mother in Montreux, together with Dianne Reeves, Lizz Wright and Angélique Kidjo. And she sees "Uncle Claude" again. "I gave him a big hug at first. He had no idea what a difficult time I was having here at the time."
However, she has fond memories of her mother Nina's legendary Montreux concert in 1976: "I keep the poster in an album to this day. Ever since then, I knew that one day I would sing there myself!" This wish actually came true in 2009 - but only on July 9, at the Auditorium Stravinski - with her own songs.
Lisa has since forgiven her mother Nina. "For a long time, I just called myself Simone," she says. "I didn't want to have anything more to do with Lisa, the girl who ran away from home." It wasn't until 2013 that she found herself again after a long period of meditation.
Since then, she has been Lisa again - and successful worldwide under this name. "I'm doing well," she says, "and I'm delighted that some of my school friends from my time in Switzerland will be coming to the concert in Montreux."
