Shemeika Copeland Uncivil War LP

Nominated for 2022 Grammy for Best Contemporary Blues Album. Winner of Blues Music Award for Contemporary Blues Album Of The Year. Celebrated blues, R&B and Americana vocal powerhouse Shemeika Copeland blazes an exhilarating roots music trail, with many of the songs reflecting the spirit of our turbulent times. Produced by Will Kimbrough, it features guest performances and/or songwriting by Kimbrough, Jason Isbell, Christone "Kingfish" Ingram, Jerry Douglas, Sam Bush, Orphan Brigade, Steve Cropper, Duane Eddy and Shawn Mullins.

Shemekia's passion-packed singing breathes fire into solemn, gospel-drenched anthems, lowdown blues, crunching rockers and frisky New Orleans R&B. On captivating original songs and invigorating new takes on tracks by the Rolling Stones, Junior Parker and her father, famed bluesman Johnny Clyde Copeland, she commands the listener's attention while exploring life's daily struggles and triumphs, both political and personal.

Given the vitally important place the blues holds in the history of black culture, it's surprising (and perhaps a bit disappointing) that so many contemporary blues artists don't deal with more political and social issues in their songs. But Shemekia Copeland is not one of those performers, and her 2020 album, Uncivil War, finds her singing about America's racial and cultural divide with heart, soul, and compassion.... Copeland sings hard on Uncivil War, but with a sense of control and a fearless desire to be heard, and she never overdoes it even at her most urgent - her force is all the more effective for its precision.... Shemekia Copeland is one of the best singers in contemporary blues, not just for her voice but for her courage to use it to say something about American culture, and Uncivil War shows good times and a social conscience can co-exist on the same LP.