Hey everyone, so since we are on fall break now, I’ve generally been just relaxing and listening to more music, and one song that I found that really stuck out to me is the song “Backlash Blues” by Nina Simone. As I’ve stated, she is what I am interested in doing my research project over, which is why I have spent a lot of my time just playing her music, which I am completely in love with now. This song stuck out to me because the lyrics were written by Langston Hughes. I’m going to link the live version of this song because I think that the little part that she’s added on about Langston Hughes is extremely interesting, but if you are uninterested in listening to this 7 minute song, here are the lyrics:
“Langston Hughes died/ He told me many months ago/ I know how hard it’s been for you/ They never wanted to accept you, … Nina, keep on working until we open up the door … When they open up the door/ Make sure you tell them where it’s at/ So they’ll have no other place to hide behind them strange hats/ So I’m gonna leave you for a new place”
This song is very powerful to me, but first I am just going to look at that piece about Hughes. Obviously, since the song is a poem written by Hughes, it makes sense that she would give this little bit to honor him. This song was performed here a little less than a decade after its release in 1967, so it definitely seems like she is reflecting on the movement towards equal rights and what they have accomplished. This was written the year that he had died, being one of the last protest poems that he would ever write, so it definitely feels that Simone is honoring him here.
With that said, the lyrics are unpacking and protesting many of the same things that the Black Power Movement was against, such as Vietnam, insufficient wages, and poor schools and poor homes in mostly black areas. The final stanza is where it begins to talk about protest, and the line that sticks out the most here is “Just what do you think I’ve got to lose”. Many African Americans at this time were protesting the injustices that they have faced and losing their lives because they have nothing left to lose, so they are going to continue to fight and give the white man the blues instead keeping it for the black man. The comment at the end about passing the blues on to the white man I believe to be very powerful. Black people have been oppressed throughout history that that is what led to the creation of most of this more traditional music, which is why it says a lot that they would turn it over to the white man, saying that it is their turn to suffer.
L460: The Senior Capstone Blog at IUS 
Society has always given singers and actors a break from backlash on opinions. We hold celebrities in our country in much higher regards than we do normal blue collar people. However, black folk have had to work much harder to gain the same level of being able to speak out about their opinions than white people have. This is true with the artists you shared a spotlight on. Not only is it a good song but I found it very informative and outspoken of the issues revolving people of color during this time.
It was very brave and bold of Simone to sing about these issues of white supremacy in society. The choice of title was interesting to me as well considering she must have expected “backlash,” from this song.
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