Diana (One Direction song)

"Diana"
Promotional single by One Direction
from the album Midnight Memories
Released18 November 2013 (2013-11-18)
Recorded2013
Genre
Length3:04
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Julian Bunetta
  • John Ryan

"Diana" is a song by English-Irish boy band One Direction from their third studio album Midnight Memories (2013). It was released on 18 November 2013, a week prior to the album's release.[3]

The song debuted at number two on the Irish Singles Chart on 19 November 2013, the day after it was released; it was one of three One Direction songs in the top 10 that week, along with the album's title track "Midnight Memories" (number three) and "Story of My Life" (number six). One Direction performed the song on all two of their major concert tours: Where We Are Tour (2014) and On the Road Again Tour (2015).

Background

"Diana" was leaked onto the internet on 24 September 2013,[4] before it was officially released as the first promotional single from Midnight Memories on 18 November.[5] The song was written by Julian Bunetta, Jamie Scott, John Ryan and band members Louis Tomlinson and Liam Payne.[6] In an interview with MTV News, when Bunetta was asked if the song was named after someone called Diana, he replied "Can't tell! It's definitely about somebody, maybe one day somebody will tell. But we can't tell. I think that the lyric probably pertains to what a lot of the fans are going through and feel... People feel like they're alone and that's what their escape is, Twitter and [finding] people that also relate to them, and everyone finding each other from different parts of the world that are going through the same things." He went on to say, "[I think] it was a kind of a pretty accurate depiction of the loneliness someone can feel in such a huge world and someone saying 'Hey, I feel you. I know you're there. I notice you; it's OK. You're not alone'."[7]

Tomlinson told Perez Hilton's Danielle Sacco for Perez TV that, "We [were] actually working with a few different names for the chorus, and the top name originally was 'Joanna', which is actually quite close to my mum's name, and it felt a little weird so we changed it to Diana."[8] The track features guitar work from Niall Horan, which takes influences from '80s rock.[9]

Reception

"Diana" was met with generally positive responses. Christina Garibaldi of MTV described the song as an "upbeat track," that "seems like it was taken out of the '80s." She compared the track to "Don't Stand So Close to Me" by the Police for its sound and style, as well as "The Boys of Summer" by Don Henley.[10] Rebecca Twomey of Cosmopolitan remarked, "The song has the band's signature romantic style but it showcases their vocal ability too."[11] Chris Payne of Billboard stated that the song shifts "from straight-up pop to more of a pop-rock feel." He also added, "Production-wise, its sound is firmly rooted in modern pop, though this is still a song that plenty of parents of One Direction fans should appreciate."[1]

Chart performance

The day after its release, "Diana" peaked at number 58 on the UK Singles Chart.[12] The song also debuted at number two on the Irish Singles Chart, where it was one of three One Direction songs from Midnight Memories in the top 10, along with the album's title track "Midnight Memories" (number three) and "Story of My Life" (number six).[13] "Diana" debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 11 on 7 December and dropped off the chart the following week.[14] The song peaked at number one on the Denmark Track Top 40 chart and Greece Digital Songs chart.[15][16] The track topped the iTunes charts worldwide.[17]

Charts

Chart performance for "Diana"
Chart (2013) Peak
position
Australia Digital Tracks (ARIA)[18] 2
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[19] 21
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[20] 3
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[21] 7
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[22] 23
Denmark (Tracklisten)[15] 1
France (SNEP)[23] 12
Greece Digital Songs (Billboard)[16] 1
Hungary (Single Top 40)[24] 3
Ireland (IRMA)[25] 2
Italy (FIMI)[26] 4
Luxembourg Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[27] 4
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[28] 3
Netherlands (Mega Top 50)[29] 6
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[30] 2
Portugal Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[31] 3
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[32] 3
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[33] 55
Switzerland Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[34] 6
UK Singles (OCC)[35] 58
US Billboard Hot 100[36] 11

References

  1. ^ a b Chris Payne (25 November 2013). "One Direction, 'Midnight Memories': Track-By-Track Review". Billboard. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  2. ^ Scott, Jamie (12 October 2013). "Twitter / Jamie ScottG6: So everyone can stop guessing...I co wrote 2,3,4,5,7,11 and 14 That's half i think... This album is gonna be EPIC. #MidnightMemories". Twitter. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
  3. ^ "One Direction Release New Song 'Diana' Ahead Of Launching Third Album 'Midnight Memories'". Capital FM. 19 November 2013. Retrieved 22 November 2013.
  4. ^ "One Direction new song 'Diana' leaks online, causes Twitter frenzy". New York Daily News. 24 September 2013. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  5. ^ "One Direction's New Song, "Diana," Sounds Like Literally Nothing They've Ever Done Before". Teen Vogue. 19 November 2013. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  6. ^ Midnight Memories (CD liner). One Direction. Columbia Records. 2013. 8-88837-74032-6.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  7. ^ Vena, Jocelyn (25 November 2013). "One Direction's Midnight Memories: Go Inside Their Late-Night Recording Sessions". MTV News. MTV. Archived from the original on 28 November 2013. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
  8. ^ Hilton, Perez (21 November 2013). "EXCLUSIVE! One Direction Dishes Secret Deets On The Making Of Their New Hit Diana!". Perez TV. Archived from the original on 21 November 2013. Retrieved 29 November 2013.
  9. ^ Andrew Hampp (22 November 2013). "The Billboard Cover Story – One Direction's Mapping Out Memories". Billboard. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  10. ^ Christina Garibaldi (24 September 2013). "One Direction's 'Diana': Real Or Not, Fans Left In 'Tsunami' Of Tears". MTV. Archived from the original on 1 February 2024. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  11. ^ Rebecca Twomey (22 September 2013). "One Direction's new track Diana leaks online". Cosmopolitan. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  12. ^ "Official Singles Chart: 30 November 2013 - 6 December 2013". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  13. ^ "Discography: One Direction". irish-charts.com. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  14. ^ "Billboard Hot 100: Week of 7 December 2013". Billboard. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  15. ^ a b "One Direction – Diana". Tracklisten. Retrieved 28 November 2013.
  16. ^ a b "Greece Digital Songs: Dec 7, 2013". Billboard. Archived from the original on 1 November 2015. Retrieved 7 December 2013.
  17. ^ "One Direction get hit with Diana". Irish Independent. 19 November 2013. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  18. ^ "ARIA Digital Tracks Chart – Week Commencing 25 November 2013" (PDF). ARIA Charts. 25 November 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 December 2013. Retrieved 29 November 2013.
  19. ^ "One Direction – Diana" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 28 November 2013.
  20. ^ "One Direction – Diana" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 29 November 2013.
  21. ^ "One Direction – Diana" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 29 November 2013.
  22. ^ "One Direction Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 28 November 2013.
  23. ^ "One Direction – Diana" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 28 November 2013.
  24. ^ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Single (track) Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
  25. ^ "Chart Track: Week 47, 2013". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 28 November 2013.
  26. ^ "One Direction – Diana". Top Digital Download.
  27. ^ "One Direction Chart History (Luxembourg Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Archived from the original on 21 December 2019. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  28. ^ "One Direction – Midnight Memories" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 28 November 2013.
  29. ^ "Mega Top 50 : 30/11/2013". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 29 November 2013.
  30. ^ "One Direction – Midnight Memories". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 28 November 2013.
  31. ^ "One Direction Chart History (Portugal Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Archived from the original on 22 December 2019. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  32. ^ "One Direction – Midnight Memories" Canciones Top 50. Retrieved 29 November 2013.
  33. ^ "One Direction – Diana". Singles Top 100.
  34. ^ "One Direction Chart History (Switzerland Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  35. ^ "One Direction: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
  36. ^ "One Direction Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 28 November 2013.