Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood

W. Jason Miller is a Distinguished Professor of English at North Carolina State University. He is the author of several books, including a biography of Langston Hughes, and has been featured on CNN, the BBC, NPR, and The Rachel Maddow Show.

“The fascinating lives, enduring influence, and deep friendship of two of America’s most prominent artists, Langston Hughes and Nina Simone, are given long-overdue attention. . . . Miller’s writing is vivid and transporting. . . . A must-read for American history, music, and literature buffs.”—Booklist, STARRED review“[Miller] scrupulously details how Hughes’s political poetry influenced Simone to speak out on social justice issues with songs like ‘Mississippi Goddam,’ and the narrative is bolstered by ample photographs, handwritten notes, album covers, and promotional materials. It adds up to an eye-opening portrait of two civil rights crusaders.”—Publishers Weekly“Langston Hughes supplies the hidden chord that makes Nina Simone sound so good. Jason Miller, a brilliant researcher and compelling writer, has not only solved the mystery of this essential influence, he’s written a book that helps us better understand both of these vital American artists. I’m wildly excited.”—Jonathan Eig, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of King: A Life“Unique in both form and content, W. Jason Miller’s book offers an insightful view of both Langston Hughes and Nina Simone while showing that their friendship—born from each other’s talents and affection—proved to have a lasting influence on race, music, and literature in America.”—Tony Bolden, author of Groove Theory: The Blues Foundation of Funk“Miller has crafted a nuanced and compelling biography of Hughes and Simone, telling the story of their meeting and friendship, making it feel as if it were destined. Every page explores the power of Simone’s and Hughes’s impact on the arts, civil rights, politics, and Black and queer identities throughout the twentieth century and beyond. A must-read for scholars, fans, and anyone who wants to understand the role of the artist in society and the burdens they carry, 'bound by chords that still resonate.'”—Akeia De Barros Gomes, director of the Edward W. Kane and Martha J. Wallace Center for Black History“W. Jason Miller once more has done masterful sleuthing! He investigates the last decade in the life of Langston Hughes through his intimate collaboration and friendship with pianist and vocalist Nina Simone, the High Priestess of Soul, through the emerging debates and discourse of Black Power as an aesthetic and a political philosophy, made so memorable in the poem-turned-song 'Backlash Blues.'”—Randal Maurice Jelks, author of My America: Langston Hughes on Democracy“W. Jason Miller once more has done masterful sleuthing! He investigates the last decade in the life of Langston Hughes through his intimate collaboration and friendship with pianist and vocalist Nina Simone, the High Priestess of Soul, and through the emerging debates and discourse of Black Power as an aesthetic and a political philosophy, made so memorable in the poem-turned-song 'Backlash Blues.'”—Randal Maurice Jelks, author of My America: Langston Hughes on Democracy