The screening of Alison Duke’s documentary on Sister Nancy inspires people to do what they desire and fight for what they deserve

By Yeganeh Shajari

Ophlin Russell, known by many as Sister Nancy, got the copyright to her hit song BAM BAM back in 2014, after over three decades of the music being sampled by many known artists, such as Beyonce, Ariana Grande, Kanye West and more.

Alison Duke, an award-winning Canadian director and the co-founder of OYA Media Group, has directed a few documentaries related to  Black women in creative fields, such as Sisters in Cinema, Any Other Way: The Jackie Shane Story and A Mother Apart. However, when she first came across Sister Nancy, she immediately felt touched by the story behind the first-ever dancehall DJ. Despite being the dominating female voice of two decades, Sister Nancy did not have rights to her music and made no money out of people sampling her songs for more than 30 years. The only reason she kept making music was out of love and to inspire younger women to do what they desire. Duke contacted Sister Nancy to make a movie about her life, travelling with her to different countries, and capturing how sister Nancy interacted with her fans. The result is BAM BAM: A Sister Nancy Story.

“So I tried for years to get advice but people didn’t know what to do but in 2014 I put my shoes on and stepped in and was like ‘I’m gonna get this done.’”- Sister Nancy

Last month, director Alison Duke, Sister Nancy and a few cast and crew of the documentary travelled around the world to premiere the documentary, a story that many wanted to be heard.

“So the truth is I was approached by this DJ named DJ Moshen, and he knows many DJs who knew Sister and wanted to tell the story of Sister Nancy. One day I was working late, sometimes it helps to work a bit late, and I got the call that he wanted to work on this documentary about Sister Nancy, I met her, and that’s how we hit it off.” – Alison Duke

The red carpet was held an hour before the screening of the movie on the first floor of TIFF Lightbox. Sister Nancy was the first to walk the carpet, standing confidently with the press and answering questions with a smile. Following her, we had the chance to interview Alison Duke, the visionary mind behind the movie. We also spoke to OYA Media Group’s co-founder Ngardy Conteh George and DJs K-Cut, Sir Scratch and David Kingston.

“I can’t tell you how wonderful I feel because there are so many female DJs out there, but she chose me, and it’s not just a movie it’s the story of my life and my journey, the walk that I walk and the talk that I talk.” Sister Nancy

The interviewing process went smoothly. We had the fortune of asking them questions about how Sister Nancy had influenced them, how her music and art had inspired them in their creative life, and why they decided to work on the documentary. Their answers had one thing in common: Sister Nancy’s kind heart and deep love for music and creating art.

“It feels so good because, you know, music touches people’s souls, and it’s there to make people feel good and forget about their problems, and I’m so glad that BAM BAM has the techniques and impact to make people feel that way.” – Sister Nancy

‘Having daughters myself, seeing how much Sister Nancy has influenced young women to be who they want to be and fight for their rights is heartwarming.’ -David Kingston.

Having the chance to interview Sister Nancy left us with a feeling of inspiration, power and admiration. Having the courage to do as you desire, paving the path for a future generation of young women with dreams and aspirations, and fighting for the rights that were taken from you while standing on your beliefs and values is not what we can see in a person commonly. And not only getting to know about Sister Nancy’s story but also getting to interview her in person filled our hearts with warmth and determined us to follow our aspirations.