What Is Sheila E's Net Worth?
Sheila E. is an American drummer, percussionist, singer, and author who has a net worth of $4 million. Sheila E. has earned her net worth through her collaborations with such well-known stars as Prince, George Duke, and Ringo Starr, and she has collaborated with her father, percussionist Pete Escovedo, many times. Sheila E. has released the solo albums "The Glamorous Life" (1984), "Romance 1600" (1985), "Sheila E." (1987), "Sex Cymbal" (1991), "Writes of Passage" (2000), "Heaven" (2001), "Icon" (2013), and "Iconic: Message 4 America" (2017), and her singles "The Glamorous Life" and "A Love Bizarre" (with Prince) reached #1 on the "Billboard" Dance Club Songs chart. Nicknamed the "Queen of Percussion," Sheila E. has earned five Grammy nominations, and she was honored with a Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award alongside her father in 2021. She won the CMT reality series "Gone Country" in 2009, and she has appeared in the films "The Adventures of Ford Fairlane" (1990) and "Chasing Papi" (2003) and the television shows "Cosby" (1997), "V.I.P." (1999), and "The Upshaws" (2023). Sheila E. published the book "The Beat of My Own Drum: A Memoir" in 2014.
Early Life
Sheila E. was born Sheila Cecilia Escovedo on December 12, 1957, in Oakland, California. She is the daughter of percussionist Pete Escovedo and dairy factory worker Juanita Gardere, and her heritage is Mexican-American on her father's side and Creole-French/African on her mother's side. Sheila E. has three younger siblings, Peter, Zina, and Juan, and her brothers are both percussionists. Peter is the biological father of actress/reality television personality Nicole Richie, but he and her mother, Karen Moss, couldn't afford to take care of her, so she was raised by musician Lionel Richie and his first wife, Brenda, from the age of 3. Sheila E. grew up in a Catholic household, and she is the niece of musicians Alejandro Escovedo, Javier Escovedo, Mario Escovedo, and Coke Escovedo. Her godfather was Grammy-winning musician, songwriter, and bandleader Tito Puente. Sheila E. has said that she was raped by her teenage babysitter at the age of 5 and that she was still struggling with the experience until the mid-1990s, when her best friend, Lynn Mabry, suggested that she write about it and share it with a Bible study group. Sheila E. told "USA Today" in 2019, "I wrote for an hour and a half, and when I started to read it, I realized how awful it was. I cried for two or three days. That was the beginning of healing. You can't hold onto these things. It's not your fault. Don't feel guilty or ashamed. That stops you from leading your fullest life and experiencing joy."
Career
In 1976, Sheila E. performed on the album "Yesterday's Dream" by jazz bassist Alphonso Johnson, and by her early twenties, she had played with artists such as Diana Ross, Lionel Richie, George Duke, Herbie Hancock, and Marvin Gaye. In 1977, she released the album "Solo Two" with her father and joined The George Duke Band. Sheila E. performed on many of Duke's albums, including 1978's "Don't Let Go," 1979's "Follow the Rainbow" and "Master of the Game," and 1980's "A Brazilian Love Affair." She released another album with her father, 1978's "Happy Together," then she appeared on Herbie Hancock's 1980 album "Monster" and joined Marvin Gaye's 1983 "Midnight Love Tour." Sheila E. and Prince met in 1977 when he attended a concert she performed with her father. They began collaborating during Prince's recording sessions for "Purple Rain," and Sheila E. provided vocals on the 1984 song "Erotic City" and was the opening act on the "Purple Rain Tour." She released her debut solo album, "The Glamorous Life," on Warner Bros. Records on June 5, 1984, and it reached #28 on the "Billboard" 200 chart and #7 on the "Billboard" Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. The album was certified Gold, and the title track topped the "Billboard" Dance Club Songs chart and reached #7 on the "Billboard" Hot 100 chart.
Sheila E.'s 1985 follow-up, "Romance 1600," also went Gold, and the album featured the single "A Love Bizarre," which she wrote and performed with Prince. "A Love Bizarre" reached #1 on the Dance Club Songs chart, #2 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, and #11 on the "Billboard" Hot 100 chart, and it was a top 10 hit in Germany and the Netherlands. From 1987 to 1989, Sheila E. was the drummer and musical director for Prince's tours, and she also released the 1987 album "Sheila E." The album featured the single "Hold Me," which reached #3 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. She followed her self-titled album with 1991's "Sex Cymbal," and around this time, she suffered a collapsed lung and developed serious health issues. She was also "semi-paralyzed from playing drums in heels for so long."
Sheila E. has performed with Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band several times, and she appeared Gloria Estefan's "Mi Tierra" album (1993), Cyndi Lauper's "At Last" album (2003), and the Beyoncé single "Work It Out" (2002). In the early 2000s, she released the albums "Writes of Passage" (2000) and "Heaven" (2001). She formed the all-female group C.O.E.D. (Chronicles of Every Diva) in 2006, and the following year she performed at three Prince concerts and served as a judge on Fox's "The Next Great American Band."
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Sheila E. took part in Prince's "20Ten Tour" and "Welcome 2 America" tour, and in 2011, she performed on the "American Idol" season finale alongside Marc Anthony. She released the 2011 album "Now & Forever" with The E. Family, which included her father and brothers, and she followed it with the 2013 solo album "Icon." In 2012, she performed at the Academy Awards, playing the intros and outros that surrounded commercial breaks. Sheila E. performed on the orchestral soundtracks of the films "Man of Steel" (2013) and "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" (2016), and a few months after Prince's death in 2016, she released a song called "Girl Meets Boy" in his honor. In 2017, she released the solo album "Iconic: Message 4 America" and was the featured percussionist on "The Boss Baby" soundtrack. She appeared in the 2018 Fred Armisen Netflix special "Stand Up for Drummers," and in 2020, she was the musical director and a performer for the Staples Center concert "Let's Go Crazy: The Grammy Salute to Prince." That year she also teamed up with the online education platform MasterClass, creating "Sheila E. Teaches Drumming and Percussion."
Personal Life
Sheila E. became engaged to Prince after he proposed to her onstage during the 1987 "Sign O' the Times" tour. In a 2016 interview with " Billboard," she was asked how long the engagement lasted, and she responded, "This is the thing: we were together for so long I don't really know when we weren't. We always loved each other. He really did care for me." In her memoir, Sheila E. revealed that she had been engaged to Carlos Santana at one point but that no one knew. In 2009, Howard University's Eta Delta Chapter of the Tau Beta Sigma National Honorary Band Sorority made Sheila E. an honorary member because of her humanitarian efforts. Sheila E. and her friend Lynn Mabry co-founded the non-profit organization Elevate Oakland, whose mission is to "bring culturally vibrant art and music programs to Oakland's youth."
Award Nominations
Sheila E. has been nominated for 5 Grammys: Best New Artist (1985), Best R&B Instrumental Performance for "Shortberry Strawcake" (1985), Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female and Best Rhythm & Blues Song for "The Glamorous Life" (1985), and Best Music Video, Long Form for "Prince and the Revolution LIVE!" (1986). She earned Primetime Emmy nominations for Outstanding Music Direction for "In Performance at the White House: Fiesta Latina" (2010) and "Let's Go Crazy: The Grammy Salute to Prince" (2020). In 1985, Shelia E. received American Music Award nominations for Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist and Favorite Soul/R&B Female Video Artist and MTV Video Music Award nominations for Best Female Video and Best New Artist in a Video for "Sheila E.: The Glamorous Life."
