Darrell Diaz has been the man behind the music for many of today's recording artists. In 1991, he emerged onto the professional music scene in Los Angeles as the keyboardist/synthesist with jazz legend Herbie Hancock. Since, then he has gone on to become a successful writer, producer, engineer, keyboardist and musical director with such artists as Kenny Lattimore, Stanley Clarke, Gerald Albright, Doc Powell, Howard Hewett, DMX, Stevie Wonder, Quincy Jones and Maxwell, with whom he received his first Platinum album, Urban Hang Suite and his first No. 1 song "Fortunate." He is a voting member of NARAS (Grammy committee) and teaches privately in LA with a focus on Afro-Cuban Jazz. He made his solo debut with the release of "Devotion" in 2002.
Biography:
"When I grow up, I want to be like Quincy Jones. I want to work with all of the great artists and produce great music." That's what Darrell Diaz used to say when he was 15 years old. So after honing his skills at Berklee College of Music, he set off for Los Angeles.
His first gig landed him as the apprentice to Herbie Hancock, and soon, his production, arranging and directing skills began to flourish. He became an in-demand keyboardist and writer with Gerald Albright, Imprompt2, Howard Hewett, Doc Powell and many more. In 1996, he put together and led what has been called "the tightest R&B band since Marvin Gaye" to accompany soul-sensation Maxwell, which ultimately created the hits "Fortunate" and "This Woman's Work."
Those experiences, combined with repeated requests for more of "his" music, led Darrell to create his first solo CD titled, Devotion. According to Darrell, "devotion" is the attitude of giving 100% of your being to something you believe in, not just the creator, but also your lover, your family, your art … everything. It was a quality instilled in me as a child by my father."
Devotion reflects the complete dedication Darrell has for life. It showcases the masterful arranging and harmonic daring he learned from Hancock, the purity of communication he learned from Santana, the soulful songwriting he learned from Stevie Wonder, the imagery and storytelling he learned from Peter Gabriel and lastly the divine ability to heal and love through music as embodied by the immortal Donny Hathaway.
