More than 40 years after releasing her iconic dancehall anthem “Bam Bam,” Jamaican legend Sister Nancy is still setting the record straight. In a recent Billboard interview, the pioneering female deejay praised Jay-Z for being the only artist who handled her work with true respect when sampling her music. “Jay-Z is my No. 1. He did the right thing. Everybody else was cheap; they didn’t even think about me,” she said, recalling how the rap mogul invited her to Jamaica for the video shoot of his 2017 track “Bam” with Damian Marley.
While “Bam Bam” has been sampled by everyone from Lauryn Hill to Lizzo and Kanye West, Nancy revealed that only Jay-Z made sure she was part of the moment — both creatively and financially. “Everybody has sampled the song, but he chose to take me with him,” she explained. “At the time, I had just left my accounting job at the bank, so it meant a lot.” That gesture of respect, she says, set Jay-Z apart in an industry where artists have long borrowed from her without acknowledgement.
Now 63, Sister Nancy’s story is being told in the new documentary Bam Bam: The Story of Sister Nancy, directed by Alison Duke of Oya Media Group. The film, which premiered at the 2024 Tribeca Film Festival, traces her journey from Kingston’s sound system scene to her historic fight for royalties after decades of unauthorised use of “Bam Bam.” “If it’s mine, I’m going to fight for it,” she declared. “It’s either I win or lose, but I have to try. And I implore all women to do the same.”
The dancehall trailblazer, who helped pave the way for stars like Lady Saw, Spice, and Shenseea, is still performing and recently released a new project, Armageddon, with dub legend Mad Professor. As she prepares to headline The Brooklyn Monarch on December 11, Sister Nancy remains grounded in her mission to keep dancehall rooted in authenticity. “I am still here,” she said. “All of these ladies come and go, and Sister Nancy is still here. I’m the beginning — and if you start it, you haffi finish.”