Los Angeles: Singer and actress Shonka Dukureh, 44, who plays Big Mama Thornton in Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis, was found dead in her apartment on Thursday. Police gave this information.

According to a tweet from the Metro Nashville Police Department, no foul play in Dukureh’s death was apparent.

The tweet reads, Dukureh, a Fisk University graduate, was found dead in her bedroom, where she lived with her two young children.

On Thursday morning, Dukureh went to a neighbor for help after one of his children found him not responding, reports The Tennessean. The cause of death is not yet known and will be determined by the medical examiner.

Dukureh got her breakout role this year in Elvis as Willie May’s Big Mama Thornton, the iconic R&B singer-songwriter who was the first to record Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller.

Hound Dog in 1952, later made even more famous by Elvis Presley.

Elvis was Dukureh’s first major film role, and his voice in his version of Hound Dog is featured on the film’s soundtrack.

According to The Tennessean, Dukureh was from Charlotte, NC, but later became a Nashville resident.

He received a bachelor’s degree in theater from Fisk University and a master’s degree in education from Treveka Nazarene University.

According to her website, Dukureh had plans to release her first full-length album soon.

The project is a tribute to the blues music genre in celebration of the fiercest pioneering artists and musicians who paved the way for the rock ‘n’ roll music revolution, he wrote on his website.

Throughout his career, Dukureh has performed and recorded with Jamie Liddell and artists such as Royal Pharaoh, Nick Cave, Mike Faris, Pete Rock, Smoke Déj and The Bahamas, according to his website.

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