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Sheila E.
Born in Oakland, California, Sheila was immediately surrounded by rare opportunities to collaborate musically with her legendary father, Pete Escovedo, and her siblings and extended family (her uncle is Coke Escovedo). Music enveloped her from the cradle and much of her training was gained at home from the greats. In fact, her godfather was none other than Tito Puente! By age three, Sheila began assimilating Latin and pop rhythms, performing her first show at age five. Adolescence, however, marked her decision to commit to a career in music. It was becoming evident that while Sheila was prodigy on percussion and drums, her vocal talents were also hard to ignore. To top it off, she played guitar and violin credibly. By her mid twenties, she had performed with the top artists of the era, including George Duke, Alphonso Johnson, George Duke, Lionel Richie, Herbie Hancock and Diana Ross. Now a force to be reckoned with, Sheila came to public attention-and Prince's-when she opened for the artist's Purple Rain tour. She joined Prince and for her tenure with him, and thereafter, Sheila abbreviated Escovedo to "E" and the name Sheila E. stuck. On Prince's arguably most acclaimed album, Sign O' the Times, her grooves were so solid that Prince invited Sheila to play drums and percussion on three tracks. This was an enormous endorsement of Sheila's abilities, since eighties studio logic dictated that bed tracks be laid with the fashionable Linn Drum, a computerized sequencer/sound module. Using Sheila E. in lieu of the Linn was a coup for her and a ray of hope for unemployed drummers and percussionists everywhere. Sheila's various facilities gelled in her first album under her own name, the runaway hit The Glamorous Life. Several other Sheila E. albums followed. Meanwhile, she kept up session and live work with Beyoncé, Gloria Estefan, Babyface, Jennifer Lopez, and Ringo Starr, with whom Sheila has enjoyed a long association. Her own projects included the ensemble C.O.E.D., E-Train, and the gospel group Sisters in the Spirit. Interludes included a reunion with Prince and Sheila's debut as an actress in several major movies. Sheila's deep compassion for the less fortunate in society drove her to create the Elevate Hope Foundation, which she co-chairs. Her benefit performances and relentless initiatives to better the lot of children, AIDs sufferers, and others have garnered her many awards, including Woman of the Year, the Imagen Foundation's Humanitarian Award, Angels Across America Award, and Woman of Soul Award. Seeking to draw children into rhythmical activities, Sheila E designed the Toca Players Series line, perfect for kids. Meanwhile the Toca Sheila E. Series of signature drums has set new standards in terms of tonality and aesthetics. < Back to the Toca Arists Main Menu
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The "E" derives
from a strain of royalty in percussion: the Escovedo family. For her
fans, whose numbers multiplied when Sheila collaborated with Prince on
the road and in the studio, her dignity and finesse confirmed her as
percussion's queen. Her charisma, combined with an arm's-length detachment,
has kept her at the forefront of the music industry and belies the characterization
of the "second class percussionist". Sheila E. has ascended
to star status, while her deep humanitarian concern draws her continuously
to ventures aimed at improving the life chances of children, disadvantaged
and poor people, Hispanics, AIDs victims, and other oppressed factions.
In short, she could have sat comfortably at the top but Sheila E. is
proactive in her outreach to those struggling upwards. It is no wonder
that Toca, her chosen maker of percussion instruments, created a Sheila
E. signature model, the Sheila E. Custom Series "Class E" of