Biography
Born Jennifer Anthony in London, England, Jenna first rose to attention in 1989 as one of the founding members of the all-female Gold Label sound system. The collective quickly gained recognition by challenging established outfits including Gemi Magic, Sir Coxsone Outernational and Saxon. Her forceful DJ approach and vocal delivery attracted a large audience that compared her combative presence to that of her male peers. The resulting profile brought her into recording sessions with various UK producers, though the majority of her initial tracks remained dub plate exclusives.
Adopting the name Thriller Jenna, she teamed with Mad Professor in 1992 for her debut album Thrill Dem Wid It. The well-received set contained several dancehall staples such as “Schizophrenic,” “Wash Slackness,” “DJ Mama,” “Old Time Stylee” and “Don’t Cry Mama.” Extensive touring across Europe, the USA and Jamaica ensued, and her popularity in Italy secured three consecutive invitations to the International Women’s Week festival. Alongside headline dates she opened for Burning Spear, U-Roy, Freddie McGregor, Sugar Minott, Pato Banton and Macka B, while also logging appearances on numerous television and radio programmes, among them a standout performance of “Trill Me” on the Young Gifted And Broke series.
In 1998 she wrote and recorded the tracks “I Don’t Care,” “Action” and “The Clash” for the Channel 4 film Baby Mother. During that project she aligned with the Status Crew, who issued “Trill Me” in 2000. That same year she became a member of the Sista crew with AbbaKush, Aisha and Akabu; their joint shows received widespread praise.
Adopting the name Thriller Jenna, she teamed with Mad Professor in 1992 for her debut album Thrill Dem Wid It. The well-received set contained several dancehall staples such as “Schizophrenic,” “Wash Slackness,” “DJ Mama,” “Old Time Stylee” and “Don’t Cry Mama.” Extensive touring across Europe, the USA and Jamaica ensued, and her popularity in Italy secured three consecutive invitations to the International Women’s Week festival. Alongside headline dates she opened for Burning Spear, U-Roy, Freddie McGregor, Sugar Minott, Pato Banton and Macka B, while also logging appearances on numerous television and radio programmes, among them a standout performance of “Trill Me” on the Young Gifted And Broke series.
In 1998 she wrote and recorded the tracks “I Don’t Care,” “Action” and “The Clash” for the Channel 4 film Baby Mother. During that project she aligned with the Status Crew, who issued “Trill Me” in 2000. That same year she became a member of the Sista crew with AbbaKush, Aisha and Akabu; their joint shows received widespread praise.