Sheila Escovedo appears as one of the judges in the Fox television network’s competitive reality TV series American Band. More popularly known by her stage name Sheila E., she was born December 12, 1957 in Oakland, California. She is the daughter of percussionist Pete Escovedo, and she frequently performs together with him. Other famed and musically-inclined names in her family include her uncle Alejandro Escovedo, who performed together with Delphine Neid in the first-wave punk rock band named The Nuns; her uncle Coke Escovedo, who was also a percussionist; and her godfather Tito Puente. She was raised in a clan of mixed Creole, African-American and Mexican ancestry.

She performed her recording debut song together with jazz bassist Alphonso Johnson, for the song “Yesterday’s Dream” in 1976. Escovedo is a percussionist and drummer, though she also plays string instruments such as the guitar and violin. By the time she was in her early twenties, she was already playing and performing together with the likes of Lionel Richie, Diana Ross, George Duke, Herbie Hancock, and Marvin Gaye. Escovedo’s most notable musical collaborations were together with Ringo Starr and Prince. Aside from her musical career, she co-founded a charitable support organization for abused children named the Elevate Hope Foundation.


(Photo courtesy of FOX)