Ema Jolly (born 8 January 1986), better known by her stage name Emika, is an English

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic co ...

musician of Czech origin (her mother is from

Příbram Příbram (; german: Freiberg in Böhmen, ''Przibram'', or ''Pribram'', in 1939–1945 ''Pibrans'') is a town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 32,000 inhabitants. It is well known for its mining history, and more ...

) currently residing in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

. Her self-titled debut album was released in October 2011 via

Ninja Tune Ninja Tune is an English independent record label based in London. It has a satellite office in Los Angeles. It was founded by Matt Black and Jonathan More (better known as Coldcut) and managed by Peter Quicke and others. Inspired by a visit ...

and received generally positive reviews.

Biography

Emika, a classically trained musician who studied classical piano and composition, grew up in

Milton Keynes Milton Keynes ( ) is a city and the largest settlement in Buckinghamshire, England, about north-west of London. At the 2021 Census, the population of its urban area was over . The River Great Ouse forms its northern boundary; a tributary ...

, England. She started to make music at school (using an old sequencer program she found on a computer stashed in a cupboard) and waitressed to save up for her first

Apple Mac The Mac (known as Macintosh until 1999) is a family of personal computers designed and marketed by Apple Inc. Macs are known for their ease of use and minimalist designs, and are popular among students, creative professionals, and software en ...

and copy of

Logic Studio Logic Studio is a discontinued professional music production suite by Apple Inc. The first version of Logic Studio was unveiled on September 12, 2007. It claims to be the largest collection of modeled instruments, sampler instruments, effect plu ...

. Emika received her Music Technology degree in Bath, then procured an

internship An internship is a period of work experience offered by an organization for a limited period of time. Once confined to medical graduates, internship is used practice for a wide range of placements in businesses, non-profit organizations and gover ...

at the offices of the London label

, where she worked for a month. As the Bristol music scene was transitioning from

drum and bass Drum and bass (also written as drum & bass or drum'n'bass and commonly abbreviated as D&B, DnB, or D'n'B) is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by fast breakbeats (typically 165–185 beats per minute) with heavy bass and sub-ba ...

dubstep Dubstep is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in South London in the early 2000s. The style emerged as a UK garage offshoot that blended 2-step rhythms and sparse dub production, as well as incorporating elements of broken be ...

, she went to the first parties organised by Pinch. Speaking of the reasons that made her leave Bristol, Emika explained: "I was very ill, physically, I've had to have some operations which weren't very successful and led to more, and had a long period quite surviving from morphine, really... I was in bed for many weeks. And afterwards in Bristol I became 'the ill girl'... It was very difficult for me to recover and stay in that city". In 2006, she took advantage of a free flight to anywhere in Europe granted by her bank, as she got her account upgraded, flew to

on her own and decided to stay there. In Berlin Emika began working as a sound designer for

Native Instruments Native Instruments is a German company that develops, manufactures, and supplies music software and hardware for music production, sound design, performance, and DJing. The company's corporate headquarters and main development facilities are lo ...

, while honing her own, "uniquely haunting" (

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

) musical style with her laptop, picking up ideas from the dance scene at the

Berghain Berghain () is a nightclub in Berlin, Germany. It is named after its location near the border between Kreuzberg and Friedrichshain in Berlin, and is a short walk from Berlin Ostbahnhof main line railway station.

and

Panoramabar Berghain () is a nightclub in Berlin, Germany. It is named after its location near the border between Kreuzberg and Friedrichshain in Berlin, and is a short walk from Berlin Ostbahnhof main line railway station.

clubs. ''Fünf'', the compilation album of music crafted from field recordings made inside these clubs by Emika (who contributed her own track "Cooling Room" to the compilation), was released by

Ostgut Ton Ostgut Ton (also known as Ostgut Tonträger) was a German record label owned by the club Berghain in Berlin. Resident Advisor described it "a dominant force in dance music, beloved for its mix series and dozens of EPs, albums and compilations."ht ...

, as part of the celebration of the label's five-year anniversary. Her job at Native Instruments had an important role in her artistic development, too. "I am focused on the world of sound and the power of the human voice, the instant connections it makes with listeners, in music. In general I feel there is a lack of vocabulary in the field of electronic music", Emika later explained.

"Drop the Other" and debut album (2010)

Ninja Tune appreciated Emika's new, dark, downtempo

direction and in January 2010, released "Drop the Other" as her debut single, which has also found its way into the label's 20th anniversary box set. Since 2009, Emika has appeared on tracks with the likes of Pinch, Kryptic Minds, Paul Frick and MyMy. Her second single "Double Edge" came out in May 2010 to be followed by "Count Backwards" (April 2011) and "Pretend/Professional Loving", the latter came out in September 2011, and was remixed by Brandt Brauer Frick, Kyle Hall and DJ Rashad. On 3 October (11 October, in US), 2011, her debut album ''

Emika Ema Jolly (born 8 January 1986), better known by her stage name Emika, is an English electronic musician of Czech origin (her mother is from Příbram) currently residing in Berlin. Her self-titled debut album was released in October 2011 via ...

'' came out (all four singles included), described as the mix of "bewitching, atmospheric melodies and glitchy electronic beats" and getting good reviews. Emika's music has been described as being influenced by various genres like early

electronica Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that started in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mostly used to r ...

and classical, critics compared her to

PJ Harvey Polly Jean Harvey (born 9 October 1969) is an English singer, songwriter, and musician. Primarily known as a vocalist and guitarist, she is also proficient with a wide range of instruments. Harvey began her career in 1988 when she joined loca ...

The xx The xx are an English indie rock band from Wandsworth, London, formed in 2005. The band consists of Romy Madley Croft (guitar, vocals), Oliver Sim (bass guitar, vocals), Jamie Smith, also known as Jamie xx (beats, MPC, record production), a ...

Zola Jesus Nika Roza Danilova (born Nicole Rose Hummel; April 11, 1989), known professionally by her stage name Zola Jesus, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Her music has been noted for combining elements of electronic, industrial, ...

and

Beth Gibbons Beth Gibbons (born 4 January 1965) is an English singer and songwriter. She is the singer and lyricist for the band Portishead, which has released three albums. She released an album with Rustin Man, '' Out of Season'', in 2002, followed by an ...

. On 18 October 2011 Emika embarked upon her first American tour, supporting

Amon Tobin Amon Adonai Santos de Araújo Tobin (born February 7, 1972), known as Amon Tobin (), is a Brazilian electronic musician, composer and producer. He is noted for his unusual methodology in sound design and music production. He has released eight ...

on his

ISAM ISAM (an acronym for indexed sequential access method) is a method for creating, maintaining, and manipulating computer files of data so that records can be retrieved sequentially or randomly by one or more keys. Indexes of key fields are mainta ...

tour and she has continued to play live shows all over the world throughout 2012 in countries such as Austria, Czech Republic, France, Ireland, Norway, Switzerland, Russia and Turkey. She performed a live set in Berlin for music streaming website Boiler Room in 2012.Album of the week: Emika 'Klavirni LP'
Emika Boiler Room Berlin LIVE Show. Retrieved 3 June 2015. Despite her self-described "nerdy," studio-based background, Emika notes a major shift in her recent output evolving from the isolated nature of her self-titled debut LP to a more interactive and freewheeling piece of work in 2013's '' Dva''. 2015 saw her two albums: piano opus ''Klavirni'' and electronic studio album ''DREI''. ''Ibiza Spotlight'' gave both records their Album Of The Week accolade.Album of the week: Emika 'Klavirni LP'
Ibiza Spotlight. Retrieved 3 June 2015.

Education

Emika studied Creative

Music Technology Music technology is the study or the use of any device, mechanism, machine or tool by a musician or composer to make or perform music; to compose, notate, playback or record songs or pieces; or to analyze or edit music. History The earlies ...

Bath Spa University Bath Spa University is a public university in Bath, England, with its main campus at Newton Park, about west of the centre of the city. The university has other campuses in the city of Bath, and one at Corsham Court in Wiltshire. The insti ...

Film, advertising and other music use

Her music has been used in adverts by Gucci, McLaren and NBC - who used her cover of

Chris Isaak Christopher Joseph Isaak (born June 26, 1956) is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional actor. He is widely known for his breakthrough hit and signature song "Wicked Game", as well as other songs such as "Blue Hotel", "Baby D ...

Wicked Game "Wicked Game" is a song by American rock musician Chris Isaak, released from his third album, '' Heart Shaped World'' (1989). Despite being released as a single in July 1989, it did not become a hit until it was featured in the 1990 David Lync ...

in an episode of

The Blacklist ''The Blacklist'' is an American crime thriller television series that premiered on NBC on September 23, 2013. The show follows Raymond "Red" Reddington (James Spader), a former U.S. Navy officer turned high-profile criminal who voluntarily s ...

, which led to the track reaching No. 1 on iTunes in Canada and No. 2 in the US. She has contributed to film soundtracks, including a trailer for Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, and her music was used at the 2012 Olympic Games in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. Her track, "Professional Loving", was sampled by

The Weeknd Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor. Known for his sonic versatility and dark lyricism, his music explores escapism, Romance (love), ...

on his track "Professional" on his debut album ''

Kiss Land ''Kiss Land'' is the debut studio album by Canadian singer the Weeknd. It was released on September 10, 2013, through XO and Republic Records. The album was supported by six singles: " Kiss Land", "Belong to the World", "Love in the Sky", " Live ...

'' (2013).

Collaborations

Emika has collaborated with artists and producers such as Tommy Four Seven, Pinch, Nick Hoppner, Paul Frick, (

Brandt Brauer Frick Brandt Brauer Frick is a German electronic music ensemble from Berlin. The group's members are Daniel Brandt, Jan Brauer, and Paul Frick. The group's members are classically trained and began performing together in 2009. ''The Guardian'' describe ...

and Marcel Dettmann (with whom she co-produced a song for his artist album). She has recorded with the

City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra The City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra (Czech: ''Filharmonici města Prahy'') is a classical orchestra, predominantly composed of Czech classical, jazz and guest musicians. The history of the orchestra goes back to the Film Symphony Orchestr ...

and in 2014 she revealed plans to create a full orchestral symphony. She has been shot by photographers including Bettina Rheims and Madison. Emika contributed a remix (along with

Gazelle Twin Elizabeth Bernholz (née Walling), b. 1981 in Canterbury, England, and better known by her stage name Gazelle Twin, is an electronic music composer, producer and musician who is currently based in Leicestershire, England. She is unsigned and re ...

) to the Nicholas Sutton soundtrack album ''Angels Dreams Inches'' released as a limited 12" vinyl.

Emika Records

Emika launched her own label in 2014, Emika Records, initially as a platform to release her own music. The debut release was a 12" entitled ''Melancholia Euphoria''.

Improvisations X Inspirations

Emika launched a new collaborative label called Improvisations X Inspirations (also abbreviated as ImpXIns).

Solo discography

Albums

* ''

'' (

, 2011) * '' Dva'' (Ninja Tune, 2013) * ''Klavírní'' (Emika, 2015) * ''Drei'' (Emika, 2015) * ''Melanfonie'' (Emika, 2017) * ''Falling in Love with Sadness'' (Emika, 2018) * ''Klavirni Temna (Emika, 2020) * ''Chaos Star (Emika, 1 May 2020, download, was available for 24 hours only on Bandcamp)

Mini albums

* ''Chemical Fever'' (14 May 2012, Ninja Tune) * ''Klavírní EP'' (download with the album ''Dva'', 10 June 2013, Ninja Tune) * ''Drei Remixes'' (24 July 2015, Emika Records) * ''Flashbacks'' (4 March 2016, Emika Records) * ''Forever Never'' (5 August 2016, Emika Records) * ''Melanfonie Momente'' (28 October 2016, Emika Records) * ''DREI Instrumentals & A Capellas'' (download 22 December 2017, Emika Records) * ''Falling In Love With Sadness Remixes'' (11 October 2019, Emika Records)

Singles

from the album ''Emika'': * "Drop the Other" (12", 18 January 2010,

) * "Double Edge" (12", 15 May 2010, Ninja Tune) * "Count Backwards" (12", 11 April 2011, Ninja Tune) * "Pretend" / "Professional Loving" (12", 5 September 2011, Ninja Tune) * "3 Hours" (12", 13 February 2012, Ninja Tune) from the album ''Dva'': * "Searching" (''download'', 15 April 2013, Ninja Tune) * "Centuries" (''download'', 1 July 2013, Ninja Tune) from the album ''Drei'': * "My Heart Bleeds Melody" (

promo Promo or promos may refer to: Promotions and advertising *Promo (media), a form of commercial advertising used to promote television or radio programs *Promo (professional wrestling), a televised interview in which a wrestler's on-screen personali ...

only, April 2015) from the album ''Falling in Love with Sadness'': * "Eternity (Earth version)" (''download'' 29 March 2019, Emika Records) others: * "Melancholia Euphoria" (''download'' 30 November 2014, 12" 1 December 2014, Emika Records) * "Close" (''download'' 11 June 2018, Emika Records) * "Sleep in the Day" (''download'' 1 May 2020, Improvisations X Inspirations)

Collaborations

* 2009: ''Price Tag'' EP (MyMy & Emika, AUS Music) * 2010: "2012" ( Pinch & Emika,

Tectonic Tectonics (; ) are the processes that control the structure and properties of the Earth's crust and its evolution through time. These include the processes of mountain building, the growth and behavior of the strong, old cores of continents k ...

) * 2011: "I Mean" EP (Paul Frick feat. Emika, Doppelschall) * 2011: "Make You Sleep" (Kryptic Minds vs. Emika, Black Box) * 2011 : "Pretend" (Brandt Brauer Frick) * 2016 : "Dreamt In Flesh" (Emika Remix) * 2017: "Olive tree" by Luke Black (Emika production) * 2018: “Tell Me What You Remember”, (The Black Dog, featuring Emika, from The Black Dog's “Black Daisy Wheel” album)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Emika 1986 births Living people Dubstep musicians English electronic musicians British trip hop musicians English people of Czech descent English women singer-songwriters People from Milton Keynes Ninja Tune artists English women in electronic music 21st-century English women singers 21st-century English singers Musicians_from_Bristol