Mr. Africa Poetry Lounge!
ODE TO NINA SIMONE
Sing your songs of redemption
and make us feel proud
Sing your songs of liberation
and sing it loud/loud/loud
Take a tune that's quick and white
and make it black and bold
Rap to us about the men hung
and the children sold.
Sing Nina sing
play your piano in a strange land
to celebrate the life of an African
play/play/play our favorite jams
and let us sing with you
in one accord Mississippi god damn!
Sing breathing blue madness
beating down the hip and the hop
hipping the young hipsters
to C sharp pig latin be bop.
Play your piano and chant your spell
pour over our souls your catchall of love
touch our hearts and make us obsessed
to hear you roll in your ancient mist
move us to dance like we were possessed..
Oshun of blues singing in colorful hues
we yearn to taste your voodoo brews
your beautiful ebony voice will be
the chords of your instrument will be
will be tattooed on our faces/seared on our tongues
resonating cry me a river from our internal drums.
Sing Nina sing
impregnate us with your ancestral gift
rock us with your blazing riffs
let all those that hear you be devoured
bring the sun as you do at the midnight hour
so that they will feel what we feel
we love you/we love you Nina and always will
So sing Nina sing
and let your song carry from Atlanta to Capetown
demanding your respect and our freedom now!
Written by Olutunde Olufemi
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