Shamika Cotton

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. 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”, 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.