Diana Krall Biography

Diana Krall is a jazz singer, pianist, and songwriter who is currently the only jazz singer with 8 albums debuting at the top of the Billboard Jazz Albums chart.

Early Life

Diana Jean Krall was born in Nanaimo, British Columbia on November 16, 1964. Raised by passionate musicians, Diana began playing piano at 4 years old and jazz ay 15. She attended the Berklee College of Music in the 1980s and moved to LA and then to New York to perform jazz.

Early Success

Krall released her first album Stepping Out, followed by Only Trust Your Heart in 1995. Her third album All for You: A Dedication to the Nat King Cole Trio spent an impressive 70 weeks on Billboard’s Jazz chart. In addition, it earned Diana her first Grammy nomination. In 1997, Live Scenes was issued with guitarist Russell Malone and bassist Christian McBride. The following year she released the holiday LP Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.

Breakthrough

In 1999, Diana revealed When I Look in Your Eyes, a project that exploded on the charts becoming a best-seller and finally earning her a well deserved  Best Jazz Vocal Performance Grammy award. Moreso, it was the first jazz album in 25 years to be nominated for Album of the Year. In 2001, The Look of Love was issued, created by the notorious arranger, Claus Ogerman. To no surprise, it topped Billboard charts and was certified platinum five times in Canada, the first Canadian jazz artist to achieve that. Diana also won three Juno award in 2002 for Artist of the Year, Album of the Year, and Best Vocal Jazz Album of the Year. The Girl in the Other Room was next, a standards album featuring originals as well. Diana took on the same ensemble standard direction with From This Moment On in 2006. She reunited with Claus Ogerman and released the bossa nova-themed Quiet Nights in 2009. It debuted at number 3 on the Billboard Top 200.

Present

Krall returned a few years later with Glad Rag Doll, an LP inspired by the ’20s and ’30s jazz scene. She changed to a different style with Wallflower, covering a variety of pop songs from the repertoire of Bob Dylan, Elton John, and the Eagles. In 2017, she revealed her latest album Turn Up the Quiet, which celebrated the Great American Songbook. Diana will be supporting the album with a US and European tour set to begin on the 2nd of June.

Photo credit: Louisville