--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Jazz is a white term to define black…" description: "\"Jazz is a white term to define black people. My music is black classical music.\" — Nina Simone" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb4/nina-simone-3396_black_jazz-is-a-white-term-to-define-black-peo_2232780.png" --- # Jazz is a white term to define black people. My music is… ![“Jazz is a white term to define black people. My music is black classical music.” quote by Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb4/nina-simone-3396_black_jazz-is-a-white-term-to-define-black-peo_2232780.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb4/nina-simone-3396_black_jazz-is-a-white-term-to-define-black-peo_2232780.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb4/nina-simone-3396_black_jazz-is-a-white-term-to-define-black-peo_2232780.png) > “Jazz is a white term to define black people. My music is black classical music.” [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Jazz, often labeled as “white,” is fundamentally rooted in Black cultural heritage; it is classical music of Black people. **In simple terms:** Jazz is Black classical music. Key Takeaway Recognize jazz’s true cultural roots. Themes culture music identity Mood thoughtful assertive Type critical educational When to use this quote - music education - cultural discussions - media representation Key Concepts racial terminology musical heritage Questions to Reflect On - How does labeling affect cultural perception? - What can be done to honor jazz’s origins? A Different Perspective May oversimplify complex racial dynamics. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Black people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-people/) [Classical music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/classical-music/) [Jazz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jazz/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Racism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racism/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) ## Related quotes > [To most white people, jazz means black and jazz means dirt, and that's not what I play. I play black classical music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/to-most-white-people-jazz-means-black-and-jazz-means-dirt-and-that-s/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [When I was studying... there weren't any black concert pianists. My choices were intuitive, and I had the technique to do it. People have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/when-i-was-studying-there-weren-t-any-black-concert-pianists-my/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [The humor of jazz is rich and many-sided. Some of it is obvious enough to make a dog laugh. Some is subtle, wry-mouthed, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bix-beiderbecke/the-humor-of-jazz-is-rich-and-many-sided-some-of-it-is-obvious-enough/) [Bix Beiderbecke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bix-beiderbecke/) > [I wasn't a jazz player, but a classical musician, and I improvised arrangements of popular songs using classical motifs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/i-wasn-t-a-jazz-player-but-a-classical-musician-and-i-improvised/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [I'm a big rock 'n' roll head, I love country music, I love yodeling music. But I'm still black and funky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dj-premier/i-m-a-big-rock-n-roll-head-i-love-country-music-i-love-yodeling-music/) [DJ Premier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dj-premier/) > [Theres two kinds of music: black soul music, and the white imitation thereof.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmet-ertegun/theres-two-kinds-of-music-black-soul-music-and-the-white-imitation/) [Ahmet Ertegun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmet-ertegun/) > [I want to remind people that black music is amazing. And there are all forms of it that we've forgotten, you know? Rock music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-glasper/i-want-to-remind-people-that-black-music-is-amazing-and-there-are-all/) [Robert Glasper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-glasper/) > [Even though it's called Music Of Black Origin, it's not just music for black people. Music is for everybody. I think it's good that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alesha-dixon/even-though-it-s-called-music-of-black-origin-it-s-not-just-music-for/) [Alesha Dixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alesha-dixon/) > [I feel like I don't fit in. There's not a lot of outlets for urban music, for black artists who don't have that crossover…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-alsina/i-feel-like-i-don-t-fit-in-there-s-not-a-lot-of-outlets-for-urban/) [August Alsina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-alsina/) > [I come in with this rock 'n' roll-oriented music, and it's not black enough . . . I've always had to deal with this black-white thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lenny-kravitz/i-come-in-with-this-rock-n-roll-oriented-music-and-it-s-not-black/) [Lenny Kravitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lenny-kravitz/) > [I'm admitting that I don't know that to be true, but it does sound pretty good. So a big part of my childhood was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moshe-kasher/i-m-admitting-that-i-don-t-know-that-to-be-true-but-it-does-sound/) [Moshe Kasher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moshe-kasher/) > [I was trying to establish an identity in music, and black and white had nothing to do with it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-phillips/i-was-trying-to-establish-an-identity-in-music-and-black-and-white/) [Sam Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-phillips/) > [The impact of black music and black art forms on American culture is really difficult to appreciate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jess-row/the-impact-of-black-music-and-black-art-forms-on-american-culture-is/) [Jess Row](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jess-row/) > [I only knew classical music, which to me was the only true music. The only way I could survive at the bar was to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/i-only-knew-classical-music-which-to-me-was-the-only-true-music-the/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [As far as piano players are concerned, Oscar Peterson is my very favorite. I also like McCoy Tyner. I think that the big jazz…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/as-far-as-piano-players-are-concerned-oscar-peterson-is-my-very/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) ## More by Nina Simone > [Music is one of the ways by which you can know everything which is going on in the world. You can feel... through music...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/music-is-one-of-the-ways-by-which-you-can-know-everything-which-is/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [My love is like the wind and wild is the wind. Give me more than one caress, satisfy my hungriness. Let the wind blow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/my-love-is-like-the-wind-and-wild-is-the-wind-give-me-more-than-one/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [I can't stand loud guitars that make me deaf.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/i-can-t-stand-loud-guitars-that-make-me-deaf/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [I don't like to go to strange places. I was in Italy for about five hours on my way to Africa.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/i-don-t-like-to-go-to-strange-places-i-was-in-italy-for-about-five/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [We have ordered things so long in a certain way, we are numb. Nobody dares question it. This is what is wrong, symbolically, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/we-have-ordered-things-so-long-in-a-certain-way-we-are-numb-nobody/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [I wasn't a jazz player, but a classical musician, and I improvised arrangements of popular songs using classical motifs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/i-wasn-t-a-jazz-player-but-a-classical-musician-and-i-improvised/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [I think the rich will eventually have to cave in too, because the economic situation around the world is not gonna tolerate the United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/i-think-the-rich-will-eventually-have-to-cave-in-too-because-the/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [There's no excuse for the young...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/there-s-no-excuse-for-the-young/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [Everything that happened to me as a child involved music. It was part of everyday life, as automatic as breathing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/everything-that-happened-to-me-as-a-child-involved-music-it-was-part/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [When I was studying... there weren't any black concert pianists. My choices were intuitive, and I had the technique to do it. People have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/when-i-was-studying-there-weren-t-any-black-concert-pianists-my/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [You have to learn to get up from the table when love is not being served.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/you-have-to-learn-to-get-up-from-the-table-when-love-is-not-being/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [That's a very high goal to have, study eight hours a day to be a concert pianist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/that-s-a-very-high-goal-to-have-study-eight-hours-a-day-to-be-a/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood," a song that was written for Simone, she confronted the band's lead singer, Eric Burdon. "So you're the honky,"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/don-t-let-me-be-misunderstood-a-song-that-was-written-for-simone-she/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [This is the world you have made yourself, now you have to live in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/this-is-the-world-you-have-made-yourself-now-you-have-to-live-in-it/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) > [I'll tell you what freedom is to me: no fear. I mean really, no fear!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/i-ll-tell-you-what-freedom-is-to-me-no-fear-i-mean-really-no-fear/) [Nina Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) [Explore all 132 Nina Simone quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/) ## More Black quotes > [I wanted to write about voodoo tradition that I feel has been very important to survival of black people here: people of the African…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/i-wanted-to-write-about-voodoo-tradition-that-i-feel-has-been-very/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [When you go to a club it's not about being black or white or heavy or thick. I'm shaking my ass because I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miley-cyrus/when-you-go-to-a-club-it-s-not-about-being-black-or-white-or-heavy-or/) [Miley Cyrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miley-cyrus/) > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [The term "black metal" has become a lot looser, or can include a larger range of sounds and extra-musical aesthetics, not just Satan and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-marston/the-term-black-metal-has-become-a-lot-looser-or-can-include-a-larger/) [Colin Marston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-marston/) > [How can you be more subject; black woman in a white man's world?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-duffy/how-can-you-be-more-subject-black-woman-in-a-white-man-s-world/) [Maureen Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-duffy/) > [We have to build our own power. We have to win every single political office we can, where we have a majority of black…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fannie-lou-hamer/we-have-to-build-our-own-power-we-have-to-win-every-single-political/) [Fannie Lou Hamer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fannie-lou-hamer/) > [There is only one party in the United States, the Property Party...and it has two right wings: Republican and Democrat. Republicans are a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/there-is-only-one-party-in-the-united-states-the-property-party-and/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Black music has always known, and not been afraid to acknowledge just how high the stakes of Black thought are. To summarize the final…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-b-wilderson-iii/black-music-has-always-known-and-not-been-afraid-to-acknowledge-just/) Frank B. Wilderson III > [I know how hard it is to be a woman, especially a black woman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-tyson/i-know-how-hard-it-is-to-be-a-woman-especially-a-black-woman/) [Mike Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-tyson/) > [If soot stains your tunic, dye it black. This is vengeance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-scott-bakker/if-soot-stains-your-tunic-dye-it-black-this-is-vengeance/) [R. Scott Bakker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-scott-bakker/) > [Hollywood is so fixated on keeping it that way because it's generating the buzz, but that representation isn't right. I definitely feel like it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-boyega/hollywood-is-so-fixated-on-keeping-it-that-way-because-it-s/) [John Boyega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-boyega/) > [Nowadays most people wear black most of the time anyway: go to a literary party and one would imagine everyone there was in perpetual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-weldon/nowadays-most-people-wear-black-most-of-the-time-anyway-go-to-a/) [Fay Weldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-weldon/) > [There ain't no such thing as black Muslims. That's how they tried to cut off all my brothers in the rest of the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-ali/there-ain-t-no-such-thing-as-black-muslims-that-s-how-they-tried-to/) [Muhammad Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-ali/) > [We do not want to be reminded that it is we, the indigenous people, who are poor and exploited in the land of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-biko/we-do-not-want-to-be-reminded-that-it-is-we-the-indigenous-people-who/) [Steven Biko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-biko/) Browse all 11,655 Black quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Jazz is a white term to define black people. My music is black classical music.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Nina Simone" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/jazz-is-a-white-term-to-define-black-people-my-music-is-black/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Black" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/jazz-is-a-white-term-to-define-black-people-my-music-is-black/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb4/nina-simone-3396_black_jazz-is-a-white-term-to-define-black-peo_2232780.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb4/nina-simone-3396_black_jazz-is-a-white-term-to-define-black-peo_2232780.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb4/nina-simone-3396_black_jazz-is-a-white-term-to-define-black-peo_2232780.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Jazz is a white term to define black people. My music is black classical music.” — Nina Simone", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Nina Simone", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-simone/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Jazz is a white term to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/jazz-is-a-white-term-to-define-black-people-my-music-is-black/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-simone/jazz-is-a-white-term-to-define-black-people-my-music-is-black/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```