Pam Warren, better known as Pam the Funkstress, passed away before her good friend Boots Riley could say goodbye. But if he had gotten the chance to see the trailblazing DJ in her final moments, he would’ve said the following:
Riley shared these words in a heartfelt Facebook post Friday, exactly one week after Pam died at the age 51. Riley expressed his sadness over the loss and recalled some of the most memorable moments he had with Pam, including the first time he met her. The Oakland multi-hyphenate said he was introduced to the DJ at a Bay Area “Hip Hop Conference,” where local acts paid to hear business advice as well as perform.
Riley became convinced that Pam had to join his hip-hop group, The Coup. So in 1992, he tracked her down at 2Pac’s debut album release party, an event Pam was DJing.
Riley went on to share other anecdotes that shed more light on Pam’s many dimensions. He spoke about her successful business endeavors; her vulnerable, yet tough, nature; her love for Prince; as well as her struggles as a female artist working in a male-dominated industry. He also mentioned the time Pam had her relative pull a gun on their road manager for making her cry.
“Call it what you want,” Riley said about the gun incident. “That was Pam the muthafuckin Funkstress.”
He said the last interaction he had with her took place in summer, when he was shooting an intimate scene for a project called Sorry to Bother You. Because there was some nudity, the set was closed to most of the crew so the actors could be comfortable. Pam, who was working across the street from the set, attempted to visit Riley during the shooting of the scene. Riley said he didn’t know about this until after the fact.
“Somehow, when folks turned her away, it made her think I personally turned her away and I was being uppity in some kind of way. I only know this because she said as much to the folks that turned her away. I tried calling her with no response. Texted her, explaining, with no response. I felt terrible,” he wrote. “Once I found out she was in the hospital, her family wasn’t letting folks talk to her. I understand that totally […] Time is precious and needs to be spent with those you feel closest to. I made her a video message at a time when things looked hopeful and she needed to fight. I didn’t say stuff that sounded like I thought it was the end. I’m told she saw it and smiled.”
You can read Riley’s full post here.
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