1997–99: First albums Anaid recorded her debut album,
Diana ah Naid, in
Byron Bay for the cost of
AUD$10,000, she had 500 copies pressed and launched it at the Nimbin Bush Theatre on her 21st birthday, 8 April 1997. She sent a copy to
Triple J's radio presenter,
Richard Kingsmill, who played its lead track, "I Go Off". "I Go Off" was issued as a single in June 1997, which peaked at No. 35 on the
ARIA Singles Chart. McFarlane felt it "highlighted ah Naid's confident and passionate delivery over sparse yet adept guitar work." It was included on the various artists compilation CD for that year, the
Triple J Hottest 100, Volume 5. At the
ARIA Music Awards of 1998 she was nominated for Best New Talent and Breakthrough Artist – Single for "I Go Off". Early in 1998 Anaid supported concerts by Cake,
Wendy Matthews and
The Whitlams. McFarlane opined that it "was a convincing follow-up." Her backing band were Natt Prang on guitar, Doug E. Styles on drums and Jed Venus on bass guitar. and was used on the related various artists album,
Triple J Hottest 100 Volume 7 (2000). At the
ARIA Music Awards of 2000 ''I Don't Think I'm Pregnant
was nominated for Best Independent Release and Best Female Artist. Fellow singer-songwriter, Ella Hooper (of Killing Heidi) declared I Don't Think I'm Pregnant'' as her favourite album of the year, "She's cool, and she rocks!"
2000–10: Third and fourth albums During 2000 Anaid toured Australia with
Monique Brumby and
Deborah Conway. Anaid and Brumby became friends; Anaid recalled, "although we haven't seen much of each other, we get along so well that when we do hang out we get along like a house on fire." In 2003 Anaid modified her performance name, dropping the 'H', so that it is a complete palindrome: Diana Anaid. For the album her backing musicians include Hutt on bass guitar, Nathan Correy on electric guitar, and Florian Reinhert on drums. During this time, Anaid took another hiatus from the music industry – her father died from cancer – and she was raising her adolescent son. It was recorded in Nimbin in July 2006, with Anaid performing alone on guitar and vocals. Glen Humprhies of
Illawarra Mercury felt her lyrics provide "a real portrayal of love and life – warts and all – whether it's about the harsh reality of break-ups ('Perfect Family') or waking up after a one-night stand to have the guy confess he has a girlfriend ('Piece of Me')." On 25 September 2009 her next single, "Cynical on Waking", was released ahead of her fourth studio album,
Diana Anaid, which appeared in February 2010. She undertook a tour of the east coast of Australia during October 2009. During August to September in the following year Anaid co-headlined a national tour with Brumby, each promoted their respective fourth albums. The pair co-wrote and performed a duet on a track, "Love Is a Weapon", which provided the name for their tour.
2011 to present In January 2011, Diana Anaid was nominated in the 10th Annual Independent Music Awards for her song "Charity" in the Sing Out for Social Action Song category. It was recorded by Anaid on lead vocals and acoustic guitar; Correy on electric and bass guitars; and Dean Belcastro on drums and keyboards. In February 2017 Anaid announced that she had recorded her fifth album, titled
My Queen. Its first single, "Can't Apologise", was released in July 2017 with an accompanying music video, directed by
Nick Egan. "Can't Apologise" saw radio support across the country as Diana toured nationally and through New Zealand with Adam and The Ants and her own headline shows. Early accolades for My Queen include "Diana’s a rock ‘n’ roll firecracker... a totally passionate one-off'"- Michael Smith – Rhythms "My Queen' has all the heartache, wit, poetry and honesty of her most well-known work." – MJ O'Neill-TheMusic and producer Steve James has the following praise for Diana's My Queen album "My Queen stands up as one of the best records I’ve recorded. I’ve got a short list of 10 of the hundreds of records I have worked on, including The Screaming Jets, Monty Python’s – The Rutles, Toyah Wilcox, Weta, The Rumjacks and now My Queen has been added to that list. " Following on from "Can't Apologise" second single "Better Girl" was released early in 2018 to more rave reviews "...wistful and edgy, rebellious and arty, relentlessly creative..with an amazing voice." 100% Rock "The spirit is honest, heartfelt and pleads with listeners to, well, listen...'" MusicLove "..the alternative rock/pop on display is world class." OverDrive. Touring nationally in support of "Better Girl" Diana was described as "..the Australian equivalent of Alanis Morissette" and "one of a kind" with the video clip being described as "incredibly powerful" (MGM) and "life changing". 2018 also saw the release of third single from
My Queen, the "timeless classic"
Leaving Town, along with its "highly effective" (theMusic.com.au) music video. Diana says about the video "The whole concept of the animation really drew me in when I connected it to the song," adds Anaid. "There were some powerful correlations, beginning with the opening moments, where the girl dives into her inner wisdom, and through to the end where she is a wise, integral, connected old woman. "Leaving Town also relates to finding ones inner strength and connecting to something deeper, walking your own path and making a positive difference. The whole animation seems to throb and sway naturally with the beat of the song." == Discography ==