On “Queue”

Nicols regularly plays this selection of songs at games: “Jump Around,” House of Pain; “I Want It That Way,” Backstreet Boys; “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me),” Whitney Houston; “WIN,” Jay Rock; “thank u, next,” Ariana Grande. UW Athletics/David Stluka

Former Badger women’s basketball point guard Shawna Nicols ’05 — known today as DJ Shawna — is now the official disc jockey for the Wisconsin Badgers. She deejays at sporting events, including football and men’s and women’s basketball games, and tunes into her skills from the court to read both the players and the crowd. Nicols aims to add to Game Day traditions and create a positive experience for everyone — no matter the final score. Playing to a stadium full of people is, she says, “very surreal. I remember the first day we did sound check at Camp Randall. … I can’t imagine what it feels like to be Beyoncé, but that was maybe a small sliver of it.”

Published in the Spring 2019 issue