Gwendolyn Dianne Brooks was born in New Jersey on 3rd of January, 1939. She had an early interest in music and sang for her church while living in New Jersey. Her mother supported her talent, and she began studying vocals. Brooks recorded six songs with the group Three Playmates in 1957.

Not long after, Diane Brooks relocated to Toronto, where she later made soul music history with Canadian soul music legend, Eric Mercury and the Soul Searchers. She had a diverse musical career, including Jazz, R&B, Pop, and Blues. She has performed on the same stage as the Supremes, Natalie Cole, Mel Torme, and numerous others.

After arriving in the city, she began working on CBC broadcasts. She became a frequent performer at the Young St. club, ‘The Bluenote’. She went on tour across Ontario and Quebec, when she was not in the studio. Several reviews praised her album, Some Other Kind of Soul, on which she collaborated with guitarist Lenny Breau. She released two albums and numerous singles, the biggest hit being “”Walking on My Mind”” in 1969.

Throughout her successful career, she appeared on albums by Bette Midler, Dusty Springfield, and Gino Vannelli, among others. She also appeared on records from Anne Murray and Funkadelic. Her sophomore album, Back Stairs of My Life, had songs that charted in the top 40 in Canada and received radio airplay in the United States.

She died in Toronto in 2005 from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. Brooks had always advocated for increasing the awareness of black artists in the industry. While visibility has risen, she continued to wish for additional performance venues for musicians.