Diana Braithwaite facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Diana Braithwaite
Diana Braithwaite, May 2014
Background information
Born	Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Genres	Electric blues, country, jazz
Occupation(s)	Singer, songwriter, screenwriter
Years active	1990s–present
Labels	Various including Electro-Fi Records

Diana Braithwaite is a Canadian singer, songwriter, and screenwriter. She is known for her amazing blues music. She has won many Maple Blues Awards, which are big awards for blues music in Canada.

More recently, she has teamed up with Chris Whiteley. The Toronto Star newspaper has called them "blues icons." Together, they have won nine Maple Blues Awards and been nominated for six Juno Awards. Juno Awards are like the Grammy Awards for Canadian music. Even though they are not as well known in the United States, Diana Braithwaite and Chris Whiteley are very important and popular figures in Canadian blues music.

About Diana Braithwaite's Life and Music Career

Diana Braithwaite is a Black Canadian. Her family history is very special. Her ancestors escaped slavery in America using the Underground Railroad. They found freedom and settled in the first African-Canadian pioneer community in Ontario.

Diana was born and grew up in Toronto. She was the second youngest of six children born to Bob and Rella Braithwaite. She started singing and writing songs professionally when she was a teenager. She even opened shows for famous musicians like John Lee Hooker and Albert Collins. In 1999, Diana performed at Lilith Fair, a popular music festival. That same year, she released her first album, In This Time.

When performing alone, Diana has shared the stage with artists like Mel Brown, T-Model Ford, and Jeff Healey. She also released a song called "Rollin' and Tumblin'" in the UK and Europe.

Working with Chris Whiteley

Diana Braithwaite often performs with Chris Whiteley, who plays many different instruments. They have recorded music live at BBC Radio in London, England, with musician Bob Hall.

In 2007, Diana and Chris released an album called Morning Sun. It was a collection of new songs written in a style that sounded like music from the 1930s and 1940s. This album was released by Electro-Fi Records.

After that, they toured all over North America, Europe, and the UK. Their album Night Bird Blues (released in 2009) had a five-week tour in the UK, Russia, and Europe. This album became very popular, reaching number 2 on XM Satellite Radio. Their next album, Deltaphonic, even reached number 1 on the same radio network!

They have performed at many big music events. These include the Great British R & B Festival in Colne, England, the Monaghan Harvest Blues Festival in Ireland, and the Hudson River Park Blues Festival in New York City. They also appeared on National Public Radio.

Their fifth album together, Blues Stories, came out in 2014. It featured a mix of their own original songs and new versions of older, classic songs.

Awards and Recognitions

Diana Braithwaite and Chris Whiteley were named "Songwriter of the Year" at the 13th Maple Blues Awards.

Diana Braithwaite has also won the African-American Women in the Arts Award. This award celebrates talented African-American women in the arts.

Diana Braithwaite's Film Work

Diana Braithwaite is also a screenwriter. Her film, Underground to Canada, was shown on national television. Another film she worked on, Race to Freedom: The Underground Railroad (from 1994), was nominated for a CableACE Award.

Some of her songs, "Bad Luck Man" and "Blame It on the Bourbon," were used in the movie soundtrack for Gracie. This soundtrack won a Gemini Award for Best Short Drama. Her film Survivors was nominated for a Gemini Award and won the Golden Sheaf Award for 'best musical score'.

About Diana's Family

Diana's mother, Rella Braithwaite (whose maiden name was Aylestock), is also a writer. She has written several books about African-Canadian history.

See Also

• Canadian blues
• List of electric blues musicians

Discography

Albums