Her roots appear to point to a heavy funk lineage - she was discovered by George Clinton in her native Detroit. And she remains one of the Funk Mob's most definitive voices with a legion of fans around the world. Of her early mentor she says, "George taught me to write down all your thoughts and ideas that you feel in your heart. Nine times out of ten it turns into a song. That's how I write my songs."
Following her musical destiny, she developed the persona 'Blackwood', relocating to Rome, Italy, and where she went on to have the number one dance album of 1999 (beating Madonna!) with her smash hit "Peace" from the album entitled "Friday Night". After returning to the U.S. she shifted back into American music, touring on several legs with P Funk and taking on yet another new project that proved a brilliant concept.
She teamed up with heavyweight producer Peter Rauhofer as the dance diva, Amuka, to release 2003's dance anthem, "Appreciate Me," a hit that charted on Billboard's Top 10 and was licensed to CD compilations such as the "Queer As Folk: Club Babylon" soundtrack.
Her second single with Peter Rauhofer is the anthem, "U Ain't That Good," charted up to # 3 on Billboard and is currently being aired on radio stations around the country and appreciated by club crowds who relate to Sheila's heartfelt lyrics.
While dance music entices her, Sheila has long been known as a rocker whose voice sails happiest above raw instrumentation. As a return to her roots, her latest venture is a wonderful World Music project, with vereran rocker guitarist Johnny Rico and seasoned bassistf JK. One prominent industry rep called her, "Tina Turner with something new..." after catching wind of the demo. To quell the demand for the group, Rosewater, an album is due to drop later in 2005.
