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 the 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.