A triple 2025 Grammy Award-nominee for her terrific album, \u201cBlame It On Eve,\u201d she kicked off 2026 by performing on ABC-TV\u2019s \u201cDick Clark\u2019s New Year\u2019s Rockin\u2019 Eve With Ryan Seacrest.\u201d<\/p>\n
In February she flew to India to perform at the annual Mahindra Blues Festival in Mumbai.\u00a0She followed that by joining Joe Bonamassa, Slash and Myles Kennedy for a high-octane new version of the U2\/B.B. King song \u201cWhen Love Comes To Town,\u201d which is featured on the new all-star tribute album, \u201cB.B. King\u2019s Blues Summit 100: Celebrating The King of The Blues.\u201d<\/p>\n
The daughter of the late Texas-bred blues great Johnny Copeland, with who she often performed, Shemekia Copeland was just 23 when she did a galvanizing duet with King on a 2003 episode of \u201cThe Late Show with David Letterman.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 2012, she shared lead vocals with King, Buddy Guy, Mick Jagger and President Barack Obama for the PBS-TV special, \u201cIn Performance at the White House: Red, White and Blues.\u201d<\/p>\n
On June 4, Copeland will be part of an equally stellar lineup when she sings at the grand opening of the Bruce Springsteen Center for American Music at Monmouth University<\/a> in New Jersey. She\u2019ll be sharing the stage for the \u201cMusic America: The Songs that Shaped Us\u201d concert with Springsteen, Roseanne Cash, Trombone Shorty, Kenny Chesney, Valerie June, \u2018Keb \u2018Mo,\u00a0 Dropkick Murphys, and other artists.<\/p>\n Happily, San Diego music fans need travel no farther than Escondido on Saturday to hear Copeland \u2014 an Oceanside resident for the past five years \u2014 and her ace band perform. Based on her performances that I attended here last year at Humphreys and at the Poway Center for the Performing Arts, you can expect a night of musical fireworks.<\/p>\n 7 p.m. Saturday, April 25. California Center for the Arts, Escondido, 340 N. Escondido Blvd., Escondido. $43.20-$103.20. 800-988-4253; artcenter.org\/event\/shemekia-copeland\/<\/a><\/p>\n How versatile is pianist Aaron Diehl?<\/p>\n His many credits include performances with the New York Philharmonic, pioneering minimalist composer Philip Glass, genre-blurring singer Cecile McLorin Salvant, drum dynamo Tyshawn Sorey and such past and present jazz sax powerhouses as Benny Golson, Jimmy Heath and Branford Marsalis.<\/p>\n On his own, Diehl manages the not inconsiderable feat of sounding fresh and traditional at the same time.<\/p>\n He clearly has great reverence for the history of jazz and his piano work is marked by his harmonic sophistication. But Diehl is as playful as he is precise, and when those two qualities merge in his playing the results can be enchanting.<\/p>\n 5:30 and 8 p.m. Friday, April 24. The JAI, The Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center, 7600 Fay Avenue, La Jolla. $75-$81. 858-459-3728; theconrad.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n This storied troubadour sold out both of his 2025 San Diego concerts at The Shell, so some may be surprised he is only back for one night at the same venue this year.<\/p>\n James Taylor\u2019s San Diego concert a triumph of skill, tenacity, charm and wit<\/a><\/p>\n Either way, you can expect a night of classic songs \u2014 and a few unexpected treats \u2014 by a legendary singer-songwriter whose timeless music exudes warmth and charm.<\/p>\n Equally alluring is Taylor\u2019s aptly named All-Star Band, which is anchored by drum great Steve Gadd. The lineup also includes such stellar musicians as keyboardist Larry Goldings, bassist Jimmy Johnson, guitarist Michael Landau, percussionist Luis Conte, horn players Walt Fowler and Lou Marini, and singers Kate Markowitz, Dorian Holley and Andrea Zohn.<\/p>\n Their collective recording and performance credits could easily fill several pages of today\u2019s Night & Day section. Their performance here next week is the second date on a world tour that stretches into late September.<\/p>\n As of this writing, there are only a handful of tickets still for sale at face value.<\/p>\n 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 28.The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park, 200 Marina Park Way. $279.05. ticketmaster.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n There are few musicians better suited to celebrate International Jazz Day than San Diego\u2019s Allison Tucker Adams, who sings adeptly in six languages.<\/p>\n![\"Jazz](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/0828_ent_ocr-l-ferry-wbox-08_24392045.jpg\")
Noted jazz pianist Aaron Diehl will perform in La Jolla with his trio. (Drew A. Kelley)
\nAaron Diehl Trio<\/p>\n![\"James](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SUT-L-MUSIC-JAMESTAYLOR-0511_006.jpg\")
James Taylor will perform at the Rady Shell in downtown San Diego on Tuesday. (Photo by Sandy Huffaker for The San Diego Union-Tribune)
\nJames Taylor & His All-Star Band<\/p>\n![\"(Howard](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Allison-ADams-Tucker-by-Howard-Lipin-For-The-San-Diego-Union-Tribune.jpg\")
Multilingual jazz singer Allison Adams Tucker will perform an International Jazz Day concert at Dizzy\u2019s on Thursday, April 30. (Howard Lipin \/ for The San Diego Union-Tribune)
\n15th Annual International Jazz Day, featuring Allison Adams Tucker<\/p>\n