| Shamika Cotton | |
| Birth Place: | Cincinnati, Ohio, United States |
| Othername: | Shamika Lee Cotton |
| Yearsactive: | 2003–present |
| Occupation: | Actress |
Shamika Cotton is an American actress from Cincinnati, Ohio. She is perhaps best known to television viewers as Michael Lee's drug-addicted mother Raylene Lee in the acclaimed HBO series The Wire.
Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, Shamika Cotton graduated from Cincinnati's competitive School for Creative and Performing Arts.[1] In 2006, Cotton appeared on the I Wanna Be A Soap Star reality series to good reviews, and her performances from the show were also highlighted on Entertainment Tonight.
In November, 2007, Cotton launched a weekly videocast on YouTube entitled the “Shamika Chronicles”,[2] a series that follows her life and offers a realistic look at the daily life and work of an aspiring actress.
In 2019, she played small role in the movie The Sun Is Also a Star.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Till Death Do Us Part | - | Short | |
| 2009 | Stream | Young Jodi | Short | |
| 2011 | Pariah | Candace | ||
| 2013 | Frank the Bastard | Isolda | ||
| 2015 | Sidewalk Traffic | Nanny Moon | ||
| 2019 | The Sun Is Also a Star | Hannah |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Nickelodeon Magazine's Big 10 Birthday Bash | Herself | TV special | |
| 2006 | As the World Turns | ER Doctor | 2 episodes | |
| 2006-08 | The Wire | Raylene Lee | Recurring cast: Season 4, guest: Season 5 | |
| 2007 | Kira Danforth | Episode: "Self-made" | ||
| 2010 | Law & Order | Mrs. Dolan | Episode: "Boy on Fire" | |
| 2013 | Carol McEwan | Episode: "Beautiful Frame" | ||
| 2014-15 | Forever | Anita | Recurring cast | |
| 2016 | Gotham | Officer Holt | Episode: "Wrath of the Villains: Mr. Freeze" | |
| 2019 | The Blacklist | FBI Physician | Episode: "Dr. Hans Koehler (No. 33)" | |
| The Good Fight | Wendy | Episode: "The One About the Recent Troubles" | ||
| God Friended Me | Jen | Episode: "Return to Sender" | ||
| Elementary | Rose | Episode: "Their Last Bow" | ||
| Blue Bloods | Detective Kim Andrews | Episode: "Naughty or Nice" | ||
| New Amsterdam | Martha Randle | Episode: "The Island" | ||
| 2020 | Prodigal Son | Joanne | Episode: "Stranger Beside You" | |
| 2021 | The Equalizer | Nicole | Episode: "Reckoning" | |
| 2022 | P-Valley | Farrah Haynes | Recurring cast: season 2 |