Academy Award honoree, Emmy and Grammy-winning songwriter, Golden Globes winner, and Billboard Music Awards songwriter for three consecutive years Diane Warren is set to release a 13-track album of reggae songs titled Songs in the Key of Diane: A Reggae Compilation of Diane Warren Songs.

The project, which is due for release on July 31, will feature Pacific Island artistes covering some of Warren’s most beloved songs.

The collection of classic, deep-cut, and unreleased songs, all written by Warren, feature the likes of Common Kings, Fiji, Pia Mia, Lea Love, Gramps Morgan, among others.

“I’ve always loved reggae,” said Warren in a statement announcing the project that mixes unheard songs and lesser-known tracks with certified hits. “It’s music that just makes you feel good. My music has always had that rhythmic Caribbean feel, starting with Rhythm of the Night. It’s cool to have fresh covers of the old hits; it’s like putting a new set of clothes on them. But I’m even more excited about the songs that haven’t been heard before. There’s such a wide variety of artistes on this record, which made it so much fun to do.”

The album emerged from a more than three-decade relationship between Warren and Regime Music Group President Steven Rosen, who curated the project and co-produced it alongside Warren and Regime/Island Empire co-founders Ivory Daniel and Kevin Zinger.

“What makes a song great is its ability to stand on its own two feet, and be able to work in different genres, like reggae,” added Warren. “If the melody, lyrics and rhythm are there — the bones — it should work in any style of music. I could write something as a ballad and have it turned into a killer dance track. I love taking a song and flipping it on its head.”

Gramps Morgan of Morgan Heritage performs the song I Wish That. When the Jamaica Observer caught up with him on Friday, he was excited to be a part of the project.

“Working with Diane Warren and her team was exceptional. When I got the call to be a part of the album I was shocked. I’m just excited to be a part of the project. For her to even pick the genre of reggae and to have me sing a song like I Wish That is a blessing,” Morgan told the Observer.

Polynesian/Samoan reggae singer Sammy Johnson takes on I Heart U, a previously unreleased Warren-penned reggae song, with late Pacific reggae superstar Fiji performing a version of You Kind of Beautiful, which was originally covered by country singer Jimmie Allen for Warren’s 2021 album, The Cave Sessions, Vol 1. It was the final recording by Fiji (born George Brooks Veikoso) before his death at 55 in July 2025.

Other contributions include Filipino American singer Eli Mac, who covers the 1983 Exposé hit I’ll Never Get Over You Getting Over Me. Tongan singer Analea Brown’s take on Aerosmith’s 1998 Oscar nominated
Armageddon smash I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing. And Hawaiian-born singer MAKUA covers Bad English’s 1989 hit When I See You Smile.

Anuhea covers the LeAnn Rimes’ Coyote Ugly soundtrack tune Can’t Fight the Moonlight, alongside tracks that never saw the light of day, including Pia Mia’s Hey Haters.

Said Warren: “Being able to place these songs with these reggae and Pacific Island artistes so that they can be heard was a big attraction for me. I write songs without having any idea about who can perform them, and then along comes an artiste who fits it perfectly. That happened throughout this project.”

Warren has written a long list of hit songs for many artistes through the years. She wrote the #1 hit Rhythm of the Night, recorded in 1985 by the group DeBarge. Her other hits include If I Could Turn Back Time by Cher;
Look Away, the final #1 hit for the group Chicago; Because You Loved Me by Celine Dion; When I See You Smile by Bad English; Completely by Michael Bolton, Un-Break My Heart by Toni Braxton; and I See You in a Different Light by Chante Moore.

In total, Warren has written nine #1 songs and 33 which have charted inside the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 chart.