Intensity

Russ, Flute, Paul Anthony, T, Kenny, Jerry

What an amazing time!

Russ, Carmen, T, Paul Anthony

It was a celebration in honor of Rick James' birthday. Rick's brother Carmen threw a great event with three outstanding bands! I sang a Teena Marie tribute with the All Star Band alongside Kenny, Jerry, Wade, Flute, Russ, Joey, and Paul Anthony. Megan and Shelby (from Buffalo's "Confidance") joined us to dance on Behind the Groove.

Megan, T, Shelby

We prepared, traveled, rehearsed, dressed up, danced, sang and got down with our funky selves. I had the chance to hug people I haven't seen in years and made some wonderful new friends. It was beautiful!

Eric Jensen left me some PHENOMENAL photos that he took from the last Buffalo performance with the Original Stone City Band!

Ty (The Left Handed Bandit) presented his AWESOME sketch to Paul Anthony.

I managed to create some new promotional postcards and T-shirts (with help from New York Marketing and Artden) and launched my NEW WEBSITE!

Click here for the new and improved tanyadiona.com

I'm going to call the whole week "intense" - in a good way.

Love,
T

Can We Talk?

Hi guys! (And by that I mean guys and ladies.) Can we talk?

First of all, THANK YOU for your outpouring of love and support for the new single (released last week) with Paul Anthony of Full Force and me. Our remake of Rick James's "Fire and Desire" has gotten a lot of positive feedback and I truly appreciate all the shares and likes and comments. We're off to a great start! Rick James and Teena Marie gave us an amazing song to sing! I'm forever grateful to them for making this journey possible.

Throughout the process of recording, rehearsing and performing, I think of you all often. It's fantastic to be able to keep up with so many of you through social media and make new friends all of the time! Let's stay in touch. Let's talk.

I'm going to focus on spending more time speaking to you all. Let's have real conversations. Let's connect. We are developing more pages and interactive platforms designed to stay connected with you, not only to post what we are up to, but to hear what YOU have to say. I appreciate you more than you know. Looking forward to spending quality time with you all and welcoming new and beautiful souls into our family here.

Love You,
T

Fire & Desire on Amazon.com

Fire & Desire on Google Play

Fire & Desire on Spotify

Meet Raymond

Wow! What an amazing and extraordinarily fun week! My heart is just filled with Love and thanks for being included as a part of the show with Paul Anthony and Full Force in San Leandro this weekend.

I met so many wonderful people! Then there was Raymond...

It was the morning after the show, downstairs at the hotel's restaurant. He was kind enough to spend some time chatting over breakfast with some of us youngsters who marveled at his exceptional health and vitality, his kind spirit, and his wealth of life experience. Raymond is 96 years young! He was with his beautiful wife for 72 years! He served in WWII. He loves to dance.

Meet Raymond:

He instructs us to love each other and be happy. It was an honor to meet you sir.

Have a Blessed week everyone.

Love,
T

Love Floweth

Ever get the feeling you are EXACTLY where you are supposed to be?

I can scarcely express the gratitude in my heart for everyone and everything responsible for getting me here to this point. I absolutely adored being a part of the Full Force show for WBLS / Circle of Sisters. It was an honor beyond words.

Then there's THIS:

and I am over the moon.

I may be in a dream. To be a part of these shows with Rick James' original Stone City Band means the world to me. I'm just in heaven.

Rick James and Teena Marie have shaped my life in immeasurable ways. I am overflowing with love and gratitude for them, their music, and all of the pieces of an amazing journey that have brought me to right here and now. #LoveFloweth

To everyone guiding this path: thank you.

Some pretty cool things have happened on the way...

again, thanks.

Love,

T

Oh Yeah!

Oh yeah! That happened.

I'm beyond thrilled and honored to have performed with Paul Anthony and Full Force in Atlantic City over the weekend! Whooooooooooooooo that song tho! #FireandDesire

Endless gratitude for Rick James and Teena Marie. What an amazing influence they have been on my life.

There really aren't words powerful enough to express the Love and thanks I have for The Full Force Brothers, and every amazing and wonderful person I've met on the journey this week. So many kind-hearted souls - so much talent!

  

 

Blessed Be...
xo

Love,
T

Tremendous thanks to The National R&B Music Society for all you do!!!

Click here for The National R&B Music Society Inc

My Perfect World

I remember Robbie asking this leading question a long time ago:

"In your perfect world..." (Where would you be in a few years?)

Robbie has been the studio manager at several different locations where I've worked over the years, and remains a studio manager and a good friend (family, really) today. Robbie's question itself makes you define your goals. By answering it, you create the pathway for your dreams and goals to come true. You are saying it out loud, envisioning your future, taking the first step toward realizing those intentions.

Eddie Fluellen, Me, Nate Hughes

Nate Hughes

Me, Amelia Rose, Lanise Hughes, Steve Arrington

Me, Mark Love Gonsalves, Amelia Rose, Randall Bostick

Me, Mark Love Gonsalves

Levi Ruffin, Me

The last couple of weeks have felt like that perfect world for me. First, I performed in Las Vegas as a part of Rick James's Original Stone City Band. Words can scarcely describe how special and poignant that was for me. I started out on the music scene in Buffalo with so many of his musicians as my mentors. I was brought up, so to speak, in the musical family that lived and breathed his sound. It felt like home to be there with his band.

When I arrived back in Buffalo after that show, I was in what feels like my home away from home too. It was the studio - with Robbie, Russ, Joey and Paul. We recorded lead vocals on two tracks for what will be my second album. It was perfect.

Joey Diggs, Me, Paul Anthony, Russ

I'm positively basking in gratitude for all of my musical mentors and the amazing opportunity to work with them. So many people I cherish - all in a couple of weeks.

Sometimes... gratitude just overfloweth.

Have a most Blessed week! xo

Namaste,
T

Grammy Time!

So exciting that the Grammys were in NYC this year and that Russ and I were able to attend the telecast together!

Awesome that Russ was playing the official afterparty with Nile Rodgers & Chic!

So cool that my cousin Paul was able to join us for the afterparty!

Click here for his podcast "6 DEGREES..."

Great fun to see John and Chip there too!

Loved seeing Paul Anthony and Bowlegged Lou (from Full Force) with Joe "The Mazz" also!

It was Good Times!

Sorry this blog is posting a little later than usual today. #WhatDoYouWantFromMe #IWasUpAllNight #IEvenWentToTheGymThisMorning #GiveMeSomeCredit #LOL

Thanks to The Recording Academy and all the artists and efforts that go into creating new music and this incredible event! We had a great time. xo

Click here for The Recording Academy at Grammy.com

Namaste,
T

Keeping it Real

"Sometimes life can bring you joy..."

These are the first words of the lyrics I sang with Paul Anthony and Bowlegged Lou (of Full Force) from their new single "I Feel Good, I Look Good, I'm God Good" last week in Washington, DC.

I LOVED IT!

with Bowlegged Lou and Paul Anthony of Full Force

First of all - I was honored beyond belief when they asked me if I was available to do the shows.  It was the week of their new album release and I was to sing with them for two performances.  We were going to do two songs (both duets), and the recording artists on the actual record, whose parts I'd be singing, were Faith Evans and Tisha Campbell.

(Stop. Breathe. Jump up and down. OMG! OMG! Stop. Breathe. Calm down. You can do this.)

with Bowlegged Lou and Paul Anthony of Full Force

You see...

Once upon a time, there was a young female singer/songwriter who moved to the NYC area from Buffalo, NY when key members of her band left to tour with Rick James.  She didn't really know anyone there in NYC but was determined to make it on her own.  One day she nervously dialed the number on a card she received from a team of producers she had met earlier that year at a music conference.  To her surprise, she was met with a warm friendly voice and an invitation to their office/studio.  She went on to record and write songs there.  They were supportive and encouraging and even came down to The Apollo Theater when she competed on Amateur Night.  It was Paul Anthony who suggested the song she sing on "Showtime at the Apollo," which brought her a first place win.

Looking back, it wasn't just all of those specific things that proved most valuable for me.  It was the overall feeling that they believed in me.  I can't even measure how far that went toward my confidence as a vocalist and as a songwriter and I can not thank them enough.

I am blown away and so proud to be a co-writer on one of the songs on their new album!

As time passed and projects led everyone down their own paths, we spoke less often.  It had been a while since we had been in touch when their name came up in the studio as Russell, Joey and I were recording about a year ago.  Joey recalled seeing an episode of Unsung which featured them.  It was Joey who told me that Paul had cancer.

That's when everything at the studio came to a screeching halt as I looked up the episode online and saw for myself...

click here for "Unsung" excerpt... "Paul Anthony's Revelation"

The message I sent, to a number I had no idea whether or not was still working, was immediately returned with the same friendly spirit that greeted me all that time ago when I had first moved to NYC.  It was amazing and truly heart-warming.

The story of Full Force and Paul Anthony's journey is inspirational beyond description.  Now, with the release of their new album, words can not express how happy I am for them.  I was absolutely thrilled to see them again and it was like a dream come true to perform with them.

click here to view Fox 5 interview and performance of "I Feel Good, I Look Good, I'm God Good" with Paul Anthony, Bowlegged Lou, Tanya Diona

When I returned home on Wednesday, I was loving life and got straight to work with a spring in my step.  (I booked two shows before I even switched trains!)

The momentum continued through the weekend.  Saturday was the wedding reception of two wonderfully beautiful friends.  They were positively BEAMING with joy, and their warmth and love radiated through all of us who were present.  Everyone I spoke to shared that sentiment.  As we all laughed and smiled and cried tears of joy for them during the most amazing impromptu speeches EVER, it seemed obvious that this is the kind of pure happiness that God intends for us.  It's just simply the way things are supposed to be.  Nothing else matters.  It was perfect beauty to behold.

Jaynell and Coyote

As we were hugging goodbye, I remember saying, "Hold on to this joy.  It's the only thing that's real."

I believe it.

I'm going to live it - this week especially - and for as long as I possibly can.

Have a Joyous week y'all.

Namaste
T

Sometimes life can bring you joy

Sometimes life can take it away

That's why I stay lifted

and God Good everyday

So let no one steal your joy

no matter what the reason

Know in your heart HE walks with you

step into your season...

- From Full Force's 

"I Feel Good, I Look Good, I'm God Good"