Forget the comparisons to Etta James, Ruth Brown and Aretha Franklin. And even though Robert Plant crowned her “the next Tina Turner,” soul singer Shemekia Copeland retorts, “I never really did listen to that kind of stuff ... that’s what people do to everyone.”
While a lesser vocalist might buckle under the pressure of such superstar categorization, Copeland shrugs, “You definitely want to have your own voice and be your own person.”
These days, the singer is on a hiatus of sorts. “I’m lovin’ it!” she says. “I hit it pretty hard when I first started and now I’m kind of taking it easy.” The daughter of blues guitarist Johnny Clyde Copeland, she grew up a stage-shy talent in the shadow of the music business, finally recognizing singing as her calling and releasing her first album at age 18. Now, a decade later, Copeland’s taking a well-deserved breather ... and with her free time she’s tuning in to American Idol.
The singer insists she started watching the reality show for the first time this year because of soulful vocalist Melinda Doolittle. “She was by far the best one on the show,” Copeland insists. “Of course [viewers] voted her off. They voted off [Academy Award-winner] Jennifer Hudson!”
Copeland considers this short-sightedness on the part of Idol fans indicative of a larger issue: the way performers are now marketed as multi-tasking crooners, dancers and instrumentalists. The singer admits that she plays guitar (badly), but would rather focus on one aptitude at a time, instead of spreading herself too thinly. “I haven’t learned everything about singing, yet,” she says. “I’m taking voice lessons right now.”
Why study voice when her own iconic style has earned her Grammy nominations and high-profile fans? “I never actually learned to sing,” Copeland confesses—quite a surprise, considering her four successful recording projects (most recently The Soul Truth). But even with diva-worthy credentials, Copeland isn’t one to give attitude. While she isn’t about to divulge the details of her next project, we haven’t heard the last from this vocalist. As she said in a press statement, “You gotta sing because you need to do it.”
Shemekia Copeland plays the Biltmore Ave. Stage presented by Barley’s from 9:30-11 p.m. on Friday.
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