Emma-Lee Moss, known by her stage name Emmy the Great, is an English singer-songwriter. She has released three studio albums, First Love, Virtue and Second Love. She sings in English and in Chinese.
Early life and education
Moss was born in Hong Kong to an English father and a Chinese mother. Interested in music from a young age, she used to go by train to her nearest Tower Records shop so that she could buy the only non-Chinese music they had and, as a result, she developed a liking for bands such as Weezer, The Smashing Pumpkins, and The Lemonheads. A British citizen through her father, she moved with her family to London at the age of 12 following the ending of Hong Kong as a British colony.
Career
Her first credited appearance was as a singer on the Lightspeed Champion album Falling Off the Lavender Bridge. Her first recordings under the name Emmy the Great came in 2006, when she released a series of free demos over the internet while studying contemporary music at the University of Westminster Moss began writing her debut album, First Love, in "dilapidated studios" owned by The Earlies in rural Lancashire and was released in February 2009. It spawned the singles "We Almost Had A Baby" and "First Love". The album was received with generally positive reviews, while The New York Times compiled their list of "Best Albums of the Year 2009" and ranked First Love at No. 7. Her second album, Virtue, was released on 13 June 2011. The album's lead single "Iris" was released as a digital download on 29 April 2011. Speaking of the album's recording process, Moss said that, "It's been a very strange few months, and I can’t wait to make a record of them". Both albums are released on Emmy's own label, Close Harbour Records. After signing to the British label Bella Union, her third album Second Love was released in 2016.
Collaborations
Moss has collaborated with several other artists, most notably Dev Hynes and Fatboy Slim. She has also worked with alternative rock bandAsh on an acoustic studio re-recording of the single "D" – "Tracers" and also performed with them on their A-Z tour. Moss recorded a cover of Ash's song "Burn Baby Burn" which was the B-side to her single "First Love". Moss and Ash singer Tim Wheeler collaborated on a Christmas album, This is Christmas, in 2011. In 2013, she announced on her Facebook page that she had contributed vocals and lyrics to Gabriel Bruce's debut album. In 2011, a portrait of Emmy painted by British artist Joe Simpson was exhibited around the UK including a solo exhibition at The Royal Albert Hall. On 31 October 2012, Moss teamed up with Kate Nash on Halloween in a re-enactment of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer musical episode with herself as Willow. In 2013, Moss recorded original songs for the soundtrack for Sony Pictures' Austenland, which appeared in the film alongside an original score by Ilan Eshkeri. In 2015, she wrote the end song for Mystery Show, a podcast by the broadcaster Starlee Kine. In 2017, she wrote original music for Strangers, a series by the filmmaker Mia Lidofsky, as well as the original songs for comedian Sara Pascoe's stage adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice.
Other writing
Emma has written for The Guardian, Vice Media and for music magazine The Stool Pigeon. An article of hers, based on her time in Omaha with Lightspeed Champion, is featured in the Stool Pigeon compilation book Grace Under Pressure. Her writing style has been praised as poetic.
Personal life
During the writing of her second album Virtue, Moss' atheist fiancé underwent a religious conversion, and left her as a result, moving abroad to serve as a Christian missionary. Her song "Trellick Tower" is thought to have been inspired by this. She has since dated collaborator Ash frontman Tim Wheeler.
