Shemekia Copeland

At a young age, Shemekia Copeland is already a force to be reckoned with in the blues. While only in her early 30’s, she’s opened for the Rolling Stones, headlined at the Chicago Blues Festival and numerous festivals around the world, scored critics choice awards on both sides of the Atlantic (The New York Times and The Times of London), shared the stage with such luminaries as Buddy Guy, B.B. King, Mick Jagger, and Eric Clapton, and has even performed at the White House for President and Mrs. Obama. Heir to the rich tradition of soul-drenched divas like Ruth Brown, Etta James and Koko Taylor, the singer was presented with Taylor’s crown on June 12, 2011 at the Chicago Blues Festival and officially given the honor as the new ‘Queen of the Blues’ by Taylor’s daughter, Cookie. ‘I’ve had success in my career, and I’m happy with that,’ she says. ‘But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to continue to grow. In order for an artist to grow ‘ and for a genre to grow ‘ you have to do new things. I’m extremely proud to say I’m a blues singer, but that doesn’t mean that’s the only thing I’m capable of singing, or that’s the only style of music I’m capable of making.

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