Shirley McQueen

Shirley credits her love of music and storytelling to her close knit extended family and her upbringing in Regina, Saskatchewan. Johnny Cash or Dottie West were spinning on the record player when the neighbours came over on weekends. Summers and holidays were spent on family farms where the bonfires got lit and the fiddles and guitars came out after dinner.

The golden age of Top 40 AM radio was the daily soundtrack.

In 1985 Shirley moved to Toronto, an incredibly vibrant and seminal period of growth and expansion for Canadian art, music and broadcasting ensued.

She got an offer from the iconic Canadian broadcast and music visionary Gary Slaight to host evenings on Q107 Toronto where Brother Jake Edwards was hosting mornings.

That comet ride went from spinning vinyl and recording phone callers on reel to reel, to inserting CDs and the emergence of the internet.

From the heyday of Rush and Joni Mitchell, to the rise of the Tragically Hip and Shania Twain.

Shirley interviewed dozens of artists and hosted TV and award shows as Canada became a major player on the international music landscape.

In 1998 Brother Jake suggested she come to Vancouver and take over his weekend morning show on Rock 101 as he was moving to weekdays.

Conversations with Jim Cuddy (Blue Rodeo), Gordie Johnson (Big Sugar) and Gene Simmons (Kiss) remain career highlights.

Shirley is an actor as well with roles in the 2007 movie The Messengers, Corner Gas and more.

Subsequent moves to Winnipeg, Calgary, back to Regina, and most recently Edmonton, gave Shirley a well-rounded pan-Canadian experience. All the while bringing her unique perspective to radio, television and live events.

She arrived in Nanaimo in August, 2023 and is excited to be sharing her wealth of stories here on Icon Radio.