Tasmania-based pop artist Emi Doi, better known as エミエミ (emi emi), is officially opening a new chapter with the release of her long-awaited self-titled debut EP.
After years of experimenting with sound, performing alongside artists including Miss Kannina and Montaigne, and appearing at festivals such as Dark Mofo and Party In The Paddock, emi emi has finally brought the world into the colorful universe she has been building for years.
Primarily sung in Japanese, the EP is playful, energetic and completely unafraid to be a little weird. Emi blends bubbly J-pop melodies with hyperpop and club-inspired production, creating music that feels designed to make people move while still giving listeners a glimpse into her personal journey of reconnecting with her cultural roots and continuing to learn Japanese.
And honestly, that’s part of what makes the project so charming. emi emi doesn’t sound like an artist trying to fit into a particular box. She sounds like someone having fun discovering what happens when she stops worrying about the rules.
The project has already earned plenty of attention, with triple j’s Claire Mooney calling emi emi’s music “the hottest sound coming out of Tassie,” while Sarah O’Keefe dubbed it the “J-pop bop of the century.” Those descriptions make a lot more sense once you hear the EP for yourself.
For Emi, however, the record represents something much more personal than simply releasing a collection of songs.
“I have spent the last few years learning how to get demos to a stage where I’m happy to share them with an audience, then seeing that through to release.”
That process is practically written into the DNA of the EP. These aren’t songs that appeared overnight. Emi has spent roughly four years developing the project alongside friends and collaborators Charlie Pyecroft and Jack Mclaine, with additional mixing from Becki Whitton and Andrei Eremin.
A Colorful EP With Plenty of Personality
The EP immediately establishes emi emi’s love for infectious pop and dance music, but there’s more underneath the bright exterior than might initially meet the eye.
“urusai!”, released in June and recently added to triple j rotation, is impossible to sit still through. Built around a seriously infectious groove, the track feels like the kind of song that could turn an ordinary room into a dancefloor.
Then there’s “sukinahito,” the EP’s focus track, which takes a softer and more dreamy approach. Rather than going for an enormous pop explosion, the song floats along with a hypnotic quality that captures the excitement and warmth of falling for someone.
The closing stretch takes things somewhere darker. “nemutai” and “tabero” bring heavier bass, pulsing synths and pounding drum-machine rhythms, giving the EP a late-night club atmosphere. Yet even when emi emi moves into darker territory, the music never loses its sense of fun. That’s arguably one of the project’s greatest strengths: emi emi knows how to make something moody without making it miserable.
The EP also feels deeply connected to the people surrounding Emi. Her backup dancers, Risa Muramatsu-Ray and Eri Muloolly-Hill Konishi, have played an important role in shaping the project’s identity, particularly through Emi’s energetic live performances.
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