Dr. Karen Cyrus is a music educator, researcher and musician. She holds a PhD in Ethnomusicology from York University and a Licentiate of the Royal Schools of Music (LRSM, teaching piano); she is a graduate of UWI and of Mico Teachers College (Honors in Music).

Karen has worked in music ministry for decades in a variety of positions, including church pianist, playing for weddings, directing choirs, and as an accompanist. She has published textbooks for music education, such as Caribbean Integrated Music and Music for Big Ants and Little Ants. Her research interests include the themes of Jamaican contemporary Christian music, and one of her recent projects was creating a database of 628 hymns which was published on the website called Sing the hymns: Exploring songs of our Faith.

Dr. Cyrus is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Music at Wilfrid Laurier University and the Director of the Tshepo Institute for the Study of Contemporary Africa.