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Sister Nancy
Artist Profile

Sister Nancy

Ophlin Russell (born 2 January 1962), better known as Sister Nancy (or Muma Nancy), is a Jamaican dancehall deejay and singer. She is known as the first female dancehall DJ and was described as being a "dominating female voice for over two decades" on the dancehall scene.

One of her most famous songs is "Bam Bam", labeled as a "well-known reggae anthem" by BBC and a "classic" by The Observer.

Career

Born in Kingston, Jamaica, Russell was one of 15 siblings. Her elder brother, Robert, is better known as Brigadier Jerry, and by her mid-teens, she would occasionally perform on the Twelve Tribes of Israel soundsystem Jahlovemuzik sound system that she worked with, and worked for three years on the Stereophonic sound system with General Echo. Sister Nancy was born in a conservative household in Kingston. She was expected to perform conservative duties such as being an elder of the community and promote socially conservative values such as staying in the household, be drug-free, and family oriented. Early on, she rebelled against her traditional values and followed her brother Brigadier Jerry in DJing. She was repeatedly dissuaded from deejaying and encouraged to pursue Christian music...

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Songs on JamaicansMusic

19 playable tracks in the catalog.

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Career timeline

Stories about Sister Nancy from the JamaicansMusic archive, oldest first · 2013–2024

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  1. 2013

  2. 2014

  3. 2018

  4. 2024

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