On 16 July 1984, Sade released their debut studio album, "Diamond Life". The album sold over 10 million copies worldwide, becoming one of the top-selling debut recordings of the era and the best-selling debut album by a British female vocalist.
Diamond Life was among 10 albums nominated for British Album of 30 Years at the 2010 Brit Awards, losing to (What's the Story) Morning Glory? by Oasis. The music video for "Smooth Operator", directed by Julien Temple, was nominated for two MTV Video Music Awards in 1985, Best Female Video and Best New Artist. Diamond Life was voted the 14th best album of 1985 in the Pazz & Jop, an annual poll of American critics, published by The Village Voice; "Smooth Operator" was voted 25th in the singles poll. Pitchfork placed the album at number 10 on its list of "The 200 Best Albums of the 1980s". In 2020, Rolling Stone ranked the album number 200 on its list of "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time", and, in 2022, number 66 on its list of the "100 Best Debut Albums of All Time".