Dancehall Legend Sister Charmaine: Cause Of Death Still Unknown, GoFundMe Launched For Funeral
The exact cause of death of veteran female deejay Charmaine “Sister Charmaine” McKenzie, has not yet been revealed, but plans are still underway for her funeral this weekend, according to her best friend Lady Ann.
The funeral is scheduled for this coming Saturday, with the viewing taking place at the Crawford Memorial Methodist Church in the Bronx between 12 midday and 1 pm.
Last week, Lady Ann told DancehallMag that the 54-year-old Trench Town native had died in her sleep, but up to Sunday, according to The Gleaner newspaper, the Informer deejay said that the autopsy on Charmaine’s body had not yet been carried out.
During an interview on popular entertainment programme, Onstage, which was aired on Saturday night, Lady Ann had explained to host Winford Williams that Charmaine, who resided in The Bronx in New York had gone to another state to undertake a baby-sitting job at the time of her death.
“I talk to har like three days before she passed because she was supposed to call mi. So when I didn’t get the phone call from her, I called her house, and when I called her house, her boyfriend picked up the phone and said she died,” she explained.
“She didn’t die in the Bronx; she died upstate in Boston. Because that’s where she go to do the job. She went to go do a job and she feed di baby and put down di baby to take a nap and then she herself lay dung to take a nap and she didn’t wake up back,” she added.
Ann also pointed out at the time, that Charmaine would not be buried in Jamaica as she no longer has any known relatives on the island.
“They are not going to bury her in Jamaica cause I don’t think she have any family there, because as I understand she is the only child for her mother but she has brothers and sisters that are here in the Bronx. So she has one daughter and one granddaughter and her daughter is an American born,” she said.
Sister Charmaine emerged on the Dancehall scene in the mid-1980s, whilst still a teenager. Her first hit song Glammity was produced by Winston Riley on his Techniques label. She also followed with other tracks such as Granny Advice, Strong Body Gal, Tightness and Man Look Nice, all of which were produced by Riley.
A GoFundMe account has since been established by Sister Charmaine’s relatives to assist with the funeral expenses of the late artiste. The account, up to mid-day on Monday, had amassed just over $6,000 of its US$20,000 target.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CJzaDFJh76K/
The message on the page states that: “Sister Charmaine was a dancehall icon with a larger-than-life voice and personality to match. She lived a full life, surrounded by family, friends and people who loved her music. She is survived by her beloved daughter, granddaughter and many others whose lives she made an impact on. Although Sister Charmaine is gone, she will never be forgotten.”
Barry ‘Supa Barry’ Clarke, a former music selector on the Silver Hawk and Travellers sound systems, also told The Gleaner that following the artiste’s sudden death, he has been standing the family as Charmaine’s daughter, her only child is overwhelmed with grief.
“I was spearheading the search for a venue to host the repast, but with the covid thing, the people have hiked their rental costs, but I finally found a classy place in Gramatan Avenue in Mt. Vernon, and it will be held there on Saturday between 3 and 8p.m.,” Clarke told the newspaper.
Clarke also said the Gofundme account has been moving slowly, but that he has personally reached out to a number of persons in the music business in the United States for assistance, some of whom have been receptive.
“But the truth is that times are hard, the covid-19 pandemic has eroded the livelihood of many persons in the music business, but we are asking those who can, to make a pledge for Charmaine,” he said.