Diana King
Diana King (born November 8 1970 in Spanish Town) is a Jamaican R&B, pop, reggae, and dancehall singer-songwriter. She was born to an Indo-Jamaican mother and an African-Jamaican father.
Career
After making an appearance on The Notorious B.I.G.'s 1994 song "Respect," from his album Ready to Die, she signed a recording contract with Sony Music. King's first single "Shy Guy," co-written and produced by Andy Marvel, from her debut album Tougher Than Love, became a hit, reaching number thirteen on the Billboard Hot 100 and being certified gold by the RIAA in the U.S.; the single also hit number two on the UK Singles Chart, as well as reaching number one on the Eurochart Hot 100 Singles chart going on to sell nearly three million singles worldwide. The song made the soundtrack to the 1995 film Bad Boys. "Shy Guy" was also ranked by influential Japanese radio station J-Wave as the number-one song of 1995.
In 1997, King's second album Think Like a Girl entered the Billboard Top Reggae Albums chart at number one. King also scored another well-received hit on the Billboard Hot 100 and the Hot Dance Club Play with her cover version of the song "I Say a Little Prayer" (originally recorded by Dionne Warwick in 1967), featured on the soundtrack to the film My Best Friend's Wedding. King was also featured on the 1997 soundtrack to the documentary When We Were Kings, where she performed a duet of the same title with Brian McKnight. In 1998, King joined Celine Dion and Brownstone on stage to perform their hit "Treat Her Like a Lady" at the Essence Awards, in which they received a standing ovation. That year she also appeared on Soul Train, The RuPaul Show, and VIBE to promote Think Like a Girl. In 1999 she toured India doing a five city tour. From Goa she said "I never thought I would come back to India so soon. India is very special to me. Like home—from the people, to the food. I feel at home here."[1]
King entered negotiations with Madonna's Maverick Records label in 2000. In 2002 King released her third album Respect, it became a hit overseas, but was not released in the U.S., until summer of 2006, where it is only available on Amazon.com. Its first single "Summer Breezin'" receiving BET and VH1 video and urban radio airplay. In 2007 she recorded the song "The Light Within" with the German reggae artist, Gentleman, for his album Another Intensity. She also had the girl duo Brick & Lace join in one of her concert tour as backup singers.
Discography
Albums
| Year | Album | U.S. | U.S. R&B | U.S. reggae | U.S. heatseekers | UK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Tougher Than Love | 179 | 85 | 1 | 6 | - |
| 1997 | Think Like a Girl | - | - | 1 | - | - |
| 2002 | Respect | - | - | - | - | - |
Singles
| Year | Title | Album | U.S. | U.S. R&B | U.S. dance | U.S. dance sales | UK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | "Stir It Up" | Cool Runnings (Soundtrack) | - | 53 | - | - | - |
| 1994 | "Shy Guy" | Tougher Than Love/Bad Boys (Soundtrack) | 13 | 21 | 20 | 2 | |
| 1995 | "Love Triangle" | Tougher Than Love | - | 85 | - | - | - |
| 1995 | "Ain't Nobody" | Tougher Than Love | 94 | 63 | 4 | - | 13 |
| 1997 | "I Say A Little Prayer" | Think Like a Girl | 38 | 68 | 8 | 5 | 17 |
| 1997 | "L-L-Lies" | Think Like a Girl | 71 | 67 | - | - | - |
| 1997 | "Find My Way Back" | Think Like a Girl | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1997 | "When We Were Kings"(with Brian McKnight) | When We Were Kings (Soundtrack) | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1999 | "Treat Her Like a Lady" (with Celine Dion and Brownstone) | Let's Talk About Love | - | - | - | - | 29 |
| 2002 | "Summer Breezin'" | Respect | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2006 | "Yu Dun Kno'" | Yu Dun Kno | - | - | - | - | - |