One of life’s constants for Sheila E. comes down to a simple phrase: Follow the beat. Her impeccable inner rhythm is the pulse behind a trailblazing career that still knows no bounds.
Family, faith and music were guiding forces for Sheila E. growing up in the Bay Area. In addition to percussionist dad Pete, the Oakland, California native counts former Santana member/Azteca founder Coke Escovedo and The Dragons front man Mario Escovedo as uncles. Fellow Latin star Tito Puente was her godfather. In addition to being weaned on Latin jazz and Motown, Sheila E. was exposed to a diverse array of Bay Area acts. Those influences ranged from the rock of Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead to the R&B/pop of the Pointer Sisters and the funk of Sly & the Family Stone. “I used to sit on the corner outside of the local community center with Twinkies and 7-Up listening to Sly and Larry Graham rehearse,” Sheila E. remembers. “The sounds of the Bay Area molded me.”
It’s no surprise that after such a music-immersive childhood, the gifted, world-class drummer and percussionist began amassing an impressive string of credits playing not only with her dad but also with pioneering talents such as George Duke, Herbie Hancock, Marvin Gaye, Diana Ross, Lionel Richie, Prince, Ringo Starr, Gloria Estefan, Beyoncé and Jennifer Lopez. She is the Grammy Award-nominated singer-songwriter behind seminal hits “The Glamorous Life” and “A Love Bizarre.” She is also a fearless instrumentalist who is equally proficient on guitar and bass, and an actress, mentor and philanthropist.
Following a Bay Area gig in the late 1970s, Sheila E. met Prince backstage. Their Purple Rain recording sessions—including her vocals on the 1984 classic “Erotic City”—morphed into launching her solo career that same year. Her debut album, The Glamorous Life, spun off the Grammy Award-nominated Top 10 hit of the same name plus a second Top 40 single, “The Belle of St. Mark.” Between her ‘80s tenure as drummer, songwriter and musical director for Prince’s backup band, Sheila E. released two more solo albums (Romance 1600 and Shelia E.) and scored another classic hit with “A Love Bizarre.”
Sheila E.’s fierce, dynamic verve onstage has made her a major concert draw since the ‘90s. Along the way, she has acted in films Krush Groove, The Adventures of Ford Fairlane and Chasing Papi, and launched various music projects (E-Train, C.O.E.D., E Family Band). She added to her arsenal of credits by performing at the 2012 Academy Awards with pop hitmaker Pharrell Williams and composer Hans Zimmer. Sheila E. was also among the roster of stars chosen to perform at the 2013 Kennedy Center Honors, whose honorees included Herbie Hancock, Billy Joel and Carlos Santana.
Sheila E.'s producing, arranging and performing talents have been showcased throughout the music and film industry with appearances on the Latin Grammy Awards, the BET Awards, the American Music Awards, the Summer Olympics, the WOW Awards and The Image Awards. In 2010, Sheila E. was nominated for an Emmy Award for “Outstanding Music Direction” in recognition of her leadership as musical director for President Obama’s performance at The White House: Fiesta Latina and again more recently in 2020 for the “Let’s Go Crazy” Grammy Salute to Prince. Other projects, include The E Family Now and Forever; Pete Escovedo Live at Stern Grove Festival with her father and brothers Juan and Peter Michael Escovedo; Sheila E. Live from Lugano Switzerland DVD; Silk Road from the group Heavenese; a literary biography released by Simon & Schuster titled The Beat of My Own Drum; ICON Sheila's 2014 solo album and the single "Girl Meets Boy" in memory of Prince. Her 2017 studio project and tour, ICONIC, was Sheila's effort to bring awareness to social issues and humanitarianism. In 2020, she released the singles “No Line” with Snoop Dogg, “Lemon Cake” and “Bailar."
Away from the spotlight, music doubles as a source of healing and giving back for Sheila E. In tandem with the city of Oakland, she and her Elevate Hope organization staged the first Elevate Oakland benefit concert on Feb. 1, 2014. A host of Bay Area artists and other acclaimed musicians performed at the city-donated Fox Theatre. The goal: to raise funds to improve student academic achievement and attendance through music and arts programming. But this wasn’t Sheila E.’s first time giving back. Between gigs, she has also crisscrossed the country, speaking at schools and colleges, shelters, church organizations, music classes and clinics about music’s effect on her life and career. “Sharing music in any way I can is my ministry,” she says.
And that was part of the inspiration for penning The Beat of My Own Drum. Playing a perceived male instrument and working in a male-dominated industry exacted a personal price—several years ago Sheila E. publicly acknowledged she was an abuse survivor. “The book was the beginning of the healing," Sheila E. says. “I’d talked about working in a male-dominated industry in my ministry and addressed it in some of the song lyrics I’d written. But it was challenging to sit down and write about it in detail for the book. No one in my household told me I couldn’t play drums because I was a girl. It wasn’t until I was outside of the house and playing sessions. But through pain comes realization, understanding and the opportunity to help others overcome those challenges.”
