Miss Shanel

Miss Shanel (born Ruth Nirere) is a Rwandan singer and actress based in Paris, France. She began singing as a child, this saw her releasing two singles while in high school. She hogged the limelight at the age of 13 in 1998 when she released a song called ‘Ndarota’. Her songs are regularly played during the annual genocide commemoration period.

In 2004, she won the Never Again competition. The competition was meant to select the best commemoration artist. In the same year she released two singles which earned her much recognition.

In 2009, she released her debut album entitled ‘Narrow Road’. The album featured a number of local artists and musicians from Kenya and Uganda. In 2012, she gave a series of performances for Rwandan peacekeepers stationed in Darfur, South Sudan. In 2013, she moved to France to complete a two-year course in vocal performance.

She is a three times nominee (2006, 2007 and 2008) of the Pearl of Africa Music Award. In 2009, she won a Salax Award in the Best Female Artist category.

Besides music, she has launched a successful career as an actress. She starred in the films ‘Avenir’, ‘Long Coat’ and ‘Matière Grise’. Her performance earned her the Best Actress prize at the Thessaloniki International Film Festival in Greece and at the International Film Festival Bratislava in Slovakia. In 2011, she starred in the Rwandan film ‘Grey Matter’. The film is about genocide aftermath in Rwanda.