Juneteenth honors the day the Emancipation Proclamation reached the state and thus marked all slaves as free. First celebrated in Texas, it’s expanded over the years. Indeed, this week President Joe Biden made it a federal holiday. On Friday night, just a day before the holiday, ABC held a Juneteenth TV special, Together We Triumph, that featured performances by Jimmie Allen, Chloe Bailey, and Leon Bridges. By the end of the night, it was clear that Chloe’s performance caught the most attention.
chloe bailey i need you chloe bailey pic.twitter.com/W7A7cv9ODu
— brook gone flirt in front of her nigga (@BVSYBROOK) June 19, 2021
Idc Chloe Bailey ATE.. just at the wrong table though—baby it’s Nina Simone
https://t.co/3ZZgw183sq
— SATOSHI BABY (@_haeshaa) June 19, 2021
The singer took to the stage to share her cover of Nina Simone’s “Feeling Good” during the Juneteenth TV special. Her performance came with a spicy dance routine that left people divided, with some deeming it unfit for the classic soul song. “Idc Chloe Bailey ATE,” one person wrote on Twitter. “Just at the wrong table though—baby it’s Nina Simone [looking eyes emoji].” Others, though, defended what she’d done.
Y’all MUST do some research on Nina Simone before saying Chloe Bailey didn’t understand the assignment…Nina Simone was literally a free-spirited woman
Go watch the documentary of Nina on Hulu, then tweet lol.
—
Good Days
(@Its_Kennaa) June 19, 2021
“Y’all MUST do some research on Nina Simone before saying Chloe Bailey didn’t understand the assignment,” they wrote. “Nina Simone was literally a free-spirited woman.” They added, “Go watch the documentary of Nina on Hulu, then tweet lol.”
You can watch a clip of Chloe’s performance above and check out more reactions to it below.
people did not pay attention to Nina Simone and it SHOWS. Nina was very sex positive and literally did photoshoots with her cooch out. I don’t think she’d be upset with Chloë Bailey twerking to Felling Good, a literal song about black joy. Miss girl was getting it
— kady (@_SomeFandom_) June 19, 2021
Oddly, I think Chloe Bailey’s dance moves during her cover of Nina Simone’s Feeling Good actually fit cause I always thought that this song carried a kind of sensual vibe to it, and Chloe’s dancing actually makes me feel less awkward. I ain’t mad, Nina would’ve liked it
pic.twitter.com/IxpIxChIuJ
— ☿ 𝖘𝖆𝖙𝖘𝖚𝖐𝖎 ☿ (@dotcombaby947) June 19, 2021
Y’all coming for Chloe Bailey becauseee….??? She very much cleared that assignment with 100%. Nina Simone would be prOUD
pic.twitter.com/JSxLrxfIGl
— 𝒞𝓇𝑒𝓈𝒾𝓁𝒾𝒸𝑒 𝒞𝓇𝑒𝓂𝑒 (@cresilice) June 19, 2021
People are upset at Chloe Bailey’s rendition & performance of Nina Simone’s Feeling Good because it’s too sexy sexy?
Do y’all even know Nina Simone?
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(@13minuteslate) June 19, 2021
YAWN. The Estate is salty but we ALL know Nina is in heaven looking down at Chloe Bailey like pic.twitter.com/UMy5Y5pQqL
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A L I K. (@MalikThaElite) June 19, 2021
Why was Chloe Bailey twerking and gyrating to Nina Simone?
— peaches (@peaches07) June 19, 2021
I think vocally Nina Simone would’ve approved Chloe Bailey but the performance just too thirsty pic.twitter.com/G6AmoxJ87l
— Kazz
(@KazzCc) June 19, 2021
Didn’t love that sexualized version of the Nina Simone song…Chloe Bailey is talented but it didn’t need to be all that #SoulofaNation
— onmyphoneduh (@realityshowran1) June 19, 2021
Chloe Bailey definitely ate up that performance, but I think Nina Simone is probably turning in her grave.
…. I don’t think she had such a sexified vision for the song, nonetheless go awf Kween Lol. pic.twitter.com/BcvYVWU7np— Karen Huger’s Wig
I love Chloe Bailey but this was all I could think about while she was Bumpin and grindin’ to Nina Simone
pic.twitter.com/VasW9kueTD
— Badd Blood Zayy (@BDBG_Zay) June 19, 2021