Shelley Rae is a Bass and Rhythm Guitarist from Pensacola, Florida by the way of Birmingham, Alabama.
Shelley started playing music as a percussionist in her church at the age of 7. With the support and
encouragement of her mother, she began playing multiple instruments at age 10, such as piano,
acoustic guitar, and drums.
Shelley started her professional career as a touring Southern Gospel drummer at age 12, traveling all
over the Southeast.
Shelley began playing bass guitar at age 16 as interim bassist at her church. She fell in love with the
instrument, and she quickly became interested in Urban Gospel music, and excelled in that particular
genre. She began charting and arranging choral music at the age of 18. She started producing and
recording with various mass choirs at age 19. She became a very sought after bass guitarist and musical
director in the Birmingham area amongst churches. By age 26, she was teaching classes such as Bass
Technique and Rhythm Section at various international music conferences at churches across the
Southeast, and also has directed various and diverse bands and choirs, and was arranger of various horn
sections.
Shelley took her knowledge of Gospel music into the Blues arena in 2012. She is a familiar face along the
Gulf Coast, where she has played bass and rhythm guitar with various Blues bands. She has been a
staple musician at the Flora-Bama since 2012. She is also affiliated with the historical Mississippi Blues
Trail, where her former band “The Truth”, is displayed on the marker in Pensacola, Florida. Shelley’s
many roles in “The Truth” consisted of bass guitarist, audio engineer, bgv’s, and musical director. She
has played Blues festivals all over the United States with this band, and other bands.
Her influences are among the likes of George Porter Jr, Fred Hammond, and Oteil Burbridge. She has
also been greatly influenced by The Allman Brothers Band, Tower of Power, and The Tedeschi Trucks
Band, Stevie Wonder, and Janet Jackson. From there, she has created her own sound of
Blues/Funk/Rock fusion.
