Diaz Grimm

Diaz Grimm has never been one to color inside the lines. Since 2012, he has pushed New Zealand hip-hop into uncharted territory, choosing disruption over safety, vision over formula. A visual musician at his core, Diaz flips the traditional process on its head: the artwork, videos, and worlds come first, and the music is built to soundtrack them. For him, every project is an immersive cinematic universe, each song a scene in a much larger story.

His debut album Osiris (2015) was a post-apocalyptic odyssey that topped the NZ iTunes hip-hop charts, cracked the official Top 20, and earned him a nomination for Best Urban/Hip-Hop Album at the NZ Music Awards. The album marked him as a pioneer—leading him to tour with Six60, share stages with icons like Mac Miller, Tyga, and TNGHT, and become the first self-managed, unsigned Kiwi ever invited to play SXSW.

Diaz has since worked with Grammy-winning producer Mike Elizondo (Eminem’s “Real Slim Shady”) on his charting single Foreigners (#16 NZ singles), and after two years in Toronto, he returned to New Zealand to help engineer a new artist-led music ecosystem. A tireless advocate for independence and indigenous innovation, he released Te Kore (2021), a full te reo Māori single for Waiata Anthems, before pushing boundaries even further with Māui and The Sin (2024), a forward-looking, audio/visual concept album examining AI, creativity, and the future of artistry.

But Diaz’s influence extends well beyond his own catalogue. With a knack for A&Ring over 100 artists and curating songwriting camps where over 40 songs have been forged, his ability to draw out the best in collaborators is second to none. His vision and execution have positioned him not just as a musician, but as a builder of culture and community.

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