Lioness Niambi

When you listen to Sista Rock Steady you will understand why this Lady of Soul lives up to her names' meaning…the melody is heard… A descendant of the Maroons, known for their tenacity and for escaping the horrors of warfare by taking refuge in the mountains of Jamaica, it is no wonder she has such determination. The Maroons, a term which means 'mountain dwellers', created their own civilization, government, education system, and even developed their own forms of medicine.

“My Dad loves music," she says. "He would put his sound system's speakers on the veranda every Friday evening, put on a pot of pepper-pot soup and before you knew it, there’d be domino-knockin’, and dancing as the whole neighbourhood gathered at our house. Then on Saturday and Sunday on the radio I heard Motown hits like Diana Ross & The Supremes, Otis Redding, Sam Cooke, Curtis Mayfield and many others. ”
Little did she know that because of that exposure and rich upbringing, years later she would perform with great artists such as Ernie Smith, Lord Tanamo (of the Skatalites fame), world-renowned ska legend Prince Buster, and many more.
A trained actress and dancer, Niambi’s versatility is evident on tracks such as Play Me A song, inspired by the 2005 tragedy of Katrina, a devastating hurricane that left many people hopeless. Niambi offers joy and consoles the survivors of the disaster with her words.
Jamaica in the sixties was united by music: all kinds of music. Sista Rock Steady is a reflection of that thought. Niambi is Sista Rock Steady. Enjoy this record. It’s just an omen of much, much more to come. Niambi: ‘the melody is heard.’
“Shhh. Can you hear it? Do you feel it? It’s your pulsating heart. It’s trying to tell you Something…”