Boogie for a New Millennium

"Matter of fact," she says, "I'm playing a boogie-woogie now."

The first time she played onstage, at the February Biscuits & Blues show, Zakiya learned three chords for a song called "Dirty Things." Her guitar was tuned to a "D," an easy arrangement for a beginner. "They said, 'OK, pretty much all you have to do is strum, but you've got to make these changes,'" Zakiya says. The crowd had thinned out a little by that point. A band member passed her a red electric guitar, and she lassoed the strap over her Afro and around her neck, then launched into the song. She didn't look comfortable; the guitar seemed heavy, and she sort of chopped at the strings with her thumb.

Paolo Vescia

Zakiya with Ollan Christopher Bell, her bass player, producer, and husband.

Paolo Vescia

Zakiya with Ollan Christopher Bell, her bass player, producer, and husband.

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"But I memorized those changes," she says, "and I made 'em."