There are several reasons Chicago blues staple Shemekia Copeland is a fan favorite at the Chocolate Church Arts Center.

The singer’s talent and that of her world-class backing band are among them — as is the 34-year-old’s “justfolks” way of interacting with her audience through anecdotes and self-deprecating stories.

One such yarn involved making Vogue Magazine while wearing “a $99 dress and cheap shoes” to the Grammy Awards where, as a nominee, she ultimately lost out to her godfather Mac Rebennack, better known as New Orleans jazz-blues icon “Dr. John.”

Of course, there is her voice which, always powerful, benefits most from a live audience.

In the clean sterility of a recording studio, Copeland can — and often does — overpower a song. However, with her band routed through the main house speakers behind, and an adoring crowd of nearly 300 in front, CCAC’s air space and stellar acoustics smoothed out Copeland’s voice throughout a 16- song set and single encore.

Mostly, though, it’s because the Mid-coast just loves Shemekia Copeland, as demonstrated again during her March 23 appearance.

With only minimal equipment onstage, her four-piece backing band of guitarists Arthur Neilson and Willie Scandlyn, bassist Kevin Jenkins and drummer Morris Roberts — the unsung hero of the group — brought a big, fun sound to balance some occasionally dark material.

Copeland’s set list leaned heavily on her newest record, “33 1/3,” but featured numerous songs by her father, Johnny “Clyde” Copeland, including “Let Me Cry,” plus other standards by Koko Taylor and Sam Cooke.

Neilson, the “star” guitarist, traded licks and leads with Scandlyn on several tunes that displayed the latter’s formidable slide and comping ability. Watching Scandlyn dance on his various effects foot pedals was a special treat to anyone who appreciates the nuanced difficulty of guitar sound management.

Drummer Roberts, who juked his bandmates on several tune endings just to make sure they were paying attention, paired seamlessly with Jenkins, whose ecstatic “bass face” contortions betrayed how much fun the band had playing to an appreciative audience.

jtleonard@timesrecord.com