Shemekia Copeland: A New Age Of Blues

Blues has touched Shemekia Copeland's entire life. As a child, she often tagged along with her father, the legendary blues guitarist Johnny Clyde Copeland, on tour. By 19, the soulful intensity of her debut album, Turn the Heat Up!, established her as a promising young artist on the jazz and blues scene.

Shemekia Copeland.

Carol Friedman

Though not yet 30, the passionate singer has already won several blues awards, received a Grammy nomination and opened for acts such as The Rolling Stones, B.B. King and Taj Mahal.

Copeland continually strives to strengthen her singing and grow as a performer. While her fifth album, Never Going Back, remains true to her blues roots, she takes a step further by experimenting with new styles of music and approaches to singing. Her songs touch on stories of empowered, modern women, and include a silky cover of Joni Mitchell's "Black Crow."

In a session with host David Dye, Copeland elaborates on her growth as an artist and shares memories from her life-changing trip to Iraq during Bluesapalooza.