Zakiya Hooker

About Zakiya Hooker

Zakiya Hooker is quite familiar with the blues. You could even say she had a front-row seat to view the best the genre had to offer, right in her own living room. Her dad was the renowned blues giant John Lee Hooker. To be the daughter of a Living Legend is a major obstacle. To choose to follow in his footsteps is a major undertaking. But rather than relying on her father, Zakiya has pursued life -- and music -- on her own terms, overcoming personal tragedy and skepticism along the way. But you know what they say, “the fruit never falls too far from the tree”. This certainly rings true with Zakiya.

The Detroit native made her debut performance in 1991 with her dad, John Lee Hooker, in Oakland, CA. She has since gone on to perform and record internationally, establishing her voice in a genre dominated by men.

Zakiya has carried her music throughout Europe and parts of Asia. Zakiya has had the opportunity to perform at the world famous Radio City Music Hall in New York City as part of the Blues Series by Martin Scorsese. She has graced the stage of the famous Fillmore Auditorium, The San Francisco Blues Festival and The Monterey Jazz & Blues Festival. Zakiya has made the cover of several well-known trade magazines including Billboard Magazine. Zakiya’s voice can be heard on advertisements for Lexus and AIWA, also on the soundtrack of the movie Chalk, which won both the Camera d’Or at Cannes and Grand Prize at the Sundance Film Festival in San Francisco. The Bay Area Blues Society, South Bay Blues Society, KCSM Radio station- San Mateo, CA and the City of Oakland have honored Zakiya with numerous awards and the key to the city of Oakland, California. Zakiya released her 5th & 6th CD “In The Mood” and Zakiya Hooker “Live at the International BluesFest Eutin, Germany” in Early-September 2015.

Zakiya Hooker is John Lee Hooker’s living legacy. She is the singer-songwriter daughter of this American Icon and she is carrying her father’s seminal blues-torch confidently into the new
Millennium.