Alela Diane

American folk singer and guitarist Alela Diane was born on April 20, 1983, in Nevada City, California. Raised in a music-loving household, she began singing in the school choir before teaching herself how to play the guitar. In 2003, she self-released her first batch of songs under the moniker Forest Parade. After making her first solo appearances with fellow Nevada City native Joanna Newsom and playing with the local band Black Bear, Alela Diane issued her studio debut The Pirate's Gospel in 2004, which was later re-released by Holocene Music in 2006 to great critical acclaim. During this time, she also toured relentlessly throughout the US and Europe and had the chance to open for like-minded artists such as Iron & Wine, Akron/Family, the Decemberists, and Vashti Bunyan. In 2008, she participated in the covers album The Silence of Love, recorded with the Headless Heroes collective. Her second studio LP, To Be Still, was released via Rough Trade in 2009. Recorded with a backing band consisting of his father Tom Menig and then-husband Tom Bevitori, her third album Alela Diane & Wild Divine (2011) became her first international charting effort by reaching Number 158 on the UK Albums Chart. In the following years, Alela Diane continued her musical evolution on the albums About Farewell (2013), Cold Moon (2015) with Ryan Francesconi, and Cusp (2018), which went to Number 106 in France. Her next album, 2022's Looking Glass, would also enjoy great popularity in Europe, reaching Number 97 on the French charts.