Shemekia Copeland (b Harlem, New York City, 10 April 1979) is an American blues singer. The daughter of blues guitarist and singer Johnny Copeland, she began to pursue a singing career in earnest at age 16, when her father's health began to decline; he took Shemekia on tour as his opening act, which helped establish her name on the blues circuit. She landed a record deal with Alligator, which issued her debut album "Turn the Heat Up!" in 1998. The record was met with enthusiastic reviews, and she toured the blues festival circuit in America and Europe. Her second album, "Wicked", was released in 2000 and featured a duet with one of her heroes, early R&B diva Ruth Brown.