Alena Murang

Murang was born in Kuching, Sarawak to her retired civil servant father Datu Ose Murang, of Kelabit heritage and an anthropologist mother, Datin Dr. Valerie Mashman who is an Englishwoman of Italian descent.^[3][6][7] She started playing the sape at the age of 10, learning from renowned sape master Matthew Ngau Jau.^[6][8] She graduated with a First Class BSc (Hons) management degree from the Manchester Business School, University of Manchester. She went on to work in management consulting at PricewaterhouseCoopers, focusing on environmental sustainability, before leaving to study visual arts for a year in Singapore.^[8] Prior to pursuing music full-time, she worked as strategy manager for not-for-profit organization, Teach for Malaysia.^[8]

On June 10, 2024, she received a certificate confirming her Sarawakian native status from the Malaysian government, which allows her to inherit native land.^[9]

Murang made her debut as an artiste in 2016 with the release of EP, Flight.^[6] She never formally studied music, but has been learning the dance, songs, and music from her elders.^[6] She has performed at many renowned world music festivals including the SXSW (USA), Colors of Ostrava (Czech Republic), Paris Fashion Week (France), Rudolstadt-Festival (Germany), OzAsia Festival (Australia), and Rainforest World Music Festival (Malaysia). She was a youth representative at the UNESCO Youth Forum in Paris, and UNESCO Asia-Pacific for her work in intangible cultural heritage.

She was listed in Tatler Asia's list of Most Influential Malaysia in 2021, and Gen.T Malaysia in 2018 & 2019.^[6] In March 2023, she held her first painting exhibition Colours of the Highlands at the Hoan Gallery at La Promenade Mall, Kuching.^[10]

In May 2024, in collaboration with Sabahan singer-songwriter Velvet Aduk, she released the track "Bejugit Betanda Menari" (Dance Dance Dance) for the annual Gawai Dayak holiday.^[11] On September 7, she participated in The Sounds of Borneo, a concert with the Malaysian Symphony Orchestra featuring solo artists such as Murang, Velvet Aduk, and Marsha Milan.^[12]

In 2025, during the launching of Sarawak Biodiversity Policy Statement and Master Plan, she was appointed as Sarawak's Biodiversity Ambassador.^[13] At the Expo 2025, Alena is featured as one of Malaysia's iconic figures at the Malaysia Pavilion. ^[14]