As a young student in Oakland, California, Sheila E. was a sprinter training to be in the Olympics. At 15, her life changed when she played a show in San Francisco with her father, Latin jazz percussionist Pete Escovedo. In the decades since, the “Queen of Percussion” has built a career marked by hits including “The Glamorous Life” and collaborations with stars from Prince to Beyoncé.

The excitement she feels stepping on stage even today is “beyond,” said Sheila E., born Sheila Escovedo. “But I always get nervous, and I know that these butterflies that I’ve had my entire life, even when I would run track and field … I know that those butterflies, if it goes away, that means that passion for what I do is gone,” she said.

“And that’s never happened.”

Fans in the crowd at Artscape on Aug. 3 might catch a glimpse of the purple butterfly tattoo on her arm as Sheila E. performs with her band as the evening’s headliner, following an opening night performance by Chaka Khan and preceding Sunday’s main act, The Original Wailers featuring Al Anderson.

“Artscape 40’s headliners span musical genres from neo-soul and R&B to funk and reggae, appealing to listeners of all generations. No doubt, attendees can expect the same level of incredible performance Sheila E. always gives,” Barbara Hauck, the communications manager for Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts, wrote to The Baltimore Sun, noting that the 40th anniversary of Sheila E.’s album, “The Glamorous Life,” coincides with the festival’s 40-year celebration.

Artscape, billed as one of the nation’s largest free outdoor art festivals, has in the past attracted hundreds of thousands of attendees. It will be held in the Bolton Hill, Station North and Mount Royal neighborhoods.

It’s not the first appearance for Sheila E., who graced the festival’s stage in 2017.Then, she was thinking of the country’s sociopolitical climate after the election of former President Donald Trump and preparing to release an album of reimagined songs inspired by protest music from previous decades. Today, she’s in the midst of a tour that will take her through a slew of U.S. cities and Mexico after Baltimore, and she released her first salsa album, “Bailar,” in the spring.

Then, she was thinking of the country’s sociopolitical climate after the election of former President Donald Trump and preparing to release an album of reimagined songs inspired by protest music from previous decades. Today, she’s in the midst of a tour that will take her through a slew of U.S. cities and Mexico after Baltimore, and she released her first salsa album, “Bailar,” in the spring.

In Charm City, she’ll perform music new and old, as well as improvised.

“Timbales, singing, dancing, screaming, playing guitar, yelling, might slide across the stage — I don’t know, we’ll see what happens,” said Sheila E., 66, who lives in Los Angeles. “I love Baltimore and the people. … I hope and pray that the weather’s great and that people come out and enjoy themselves.”

It’s hardly been smooth sailing for Artscape in recent years; after a three-year hiatus sparked by the coronavirus pandemic and followed byplanning turmoil, a day of last year’s festival in September had to be called off due to a tropical storm.

“The goal, as always, is to produce the best festival we possibly can on behalf of the City of Baltimore for artists and attendees,” Hauck said. “Restarting large-scale events like Artscape after an absence of any length poses challenges. However, an immense amount of work, countless hours and collaborations, and no shortage of creativity have gone into producing this year’s festival.”

Alongside Chaka Khan, who performed at Artscape in 1993, Sheila E.’s show will be one of “many familiar elements” the first weekend of August, Hauck said.

Her star-studded career making music with George Duke, Marvin Gaye, Diana Ross, Ringo Starr, Gloria Estefan and onetime fiance Prince — among others — started with a childhood filled with music by her father and his band.

She’s been nominated for multiple Emmy and Grammy awards, and in the past decade has published a memoir; performed at the U.S. Capitol; won a Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award with her father; and become the first female solo percussionist to be honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Touring changed after 9/11 and the pandemic, she said, but she’s stuck with it, sometimes only getting a few hours of sleep a night.

“You really have to love it, and I mean really love what you do, in order to do this. Because it’s very taxing on the body,” she said. “And I love it that much.”