Early years

Shurene was born in St. Andrew, Jamaica and was raised in a quiet Spanish Town community, located in the neighbouring parish of St. Catherine. She enjoyed singing from a very young age and would often be a source of her mother’s entertainment during power outages, when she would replace the television as the source of entertainment. From about the age of 8 she was sent to the St. Jago de la Vega Church of England on Sundays. It was there that her singing talent was noticed and she was invited to join the children’s choir.

Formative performing roles

After her time in the choir, she auditioned for a performance arts group called the Cathy Levy Players. She dazzled the judges with her performance of Nat King Cole’s “Unforgettable” and was successful. She immersed herself in singing and dancing on the stages of Jamaica when the group would tour the theatres. It was a very fond period in her life and gave her the confidence that you see in her current live performances.

Interval

Financial pressures forced Shurene’s mother to migrate to the US to earn enough money to support the family. Singing had to be put on hold for several years on and off from the age of 12. Shurene could see from a young age that education was the way out of the cycle of poverty and precarious living, so she decided that singing would have to be a some-time hobby and she focussed on her academic strengths.

This move paid off. She has a BSc in Biotechnology from the University of the West Indies, Jamaica. She was offered several scholarships to study in the United Kingdom. She achieved her MSc in Biotechnology and PhD in Microbial Proteomics. She worked as a scientist for several years, then became a biosafety professional as an employee before starting her own consultancy company Bishop Simon.

Return

Despite this success she always felt that something was missing. In 2018 she realised that singing was amiss when the church worship minister asked for volunteers to sing during the Sunday family services. From that moment she continues to embrace the bold and confident nature of her young self who used to provide singing entertainment to her mother during power outages in Jamaica. Her journey from 2018 has led her to the path of writing and performing her own songs.

Mission

Her 2025 debut EP “Hallowed be thy name” offers a vibrancy to Lord’s prayer and the Apostle’s Creed. Her other songs “Work and Worship” and “In your image” shows her flexibility as a writer, in giving worshipers the gift of moving from serene to buoyant. Her vision is for all her music to be a medium through which people can have fun worshipping God through listening, singing, and even dancing. She believes that in the same way we jig to pop songs and are energised, we should be able to jig to Christian songs and be energised by God’s message. She prays that this will be an experience for all who discover her music.