Lisa Celeste Stroud – Nina Simone’s Daughter

Lisa Celeste Stroud

Lisa Celeste Stroud, AKA Simone, is the daughter of singer, musician and activist Nina Simone and her second husband Andrew Stroud. Lisa’s mom recorded more than forty albums, mostly between 1958, when she made her debut with Little Girl Blue, and 1974, and had a hit in the United States in 1958 with I Loves You, Porgy.

Lisa  was born on September 12, 1962. Her given name is Lisa Celeste Stroud. Her parents, Nina and Andy Stroud had divorced in 1972, after which she didn’t see to much of him. When she graduated from high school in 1979, She joined the Air Force and stayed for 11 years as a civil engineer’s assistant. She served in the Gulf War. During that time she was estranged from her mother.

Afterwards she left the service, she sang background for various European artists and was part of Spanish artist Raphael’s touring chorus. Her debut on Broadway was  in “Jesus Christ Superstar” in 1996. She is still an active performer, going on tours and giving concerts. She is married to Robert Kelly and the have a 14 year old daughter ReAnna.

In 2011 Lisa Celeste Stroud, the administrator for Simone’s estate, filed the suit in U.S. District Court in Northern California on Friday against Andrew B. Stroud, as well as his associate Wally Roker, to whom Stroud allegedly transferred Simone memorabilia.

She sued them for over $155,000.00 Now, Lisa herself is in trouble, as she is being accused of embezzling funds from her mother’s estate. She has allegedly ignored her mother’s wishes to fund schools for children in Africa and funneled money into her personal company. The Attorney General of California has pressured Lisa into resigning as a trustee, and is demanding an accounting of the funds. Things don’t look good for Lisa as if allegations are proven true it could result in a criminal action, and deservedly so.