Emily Margo Doty, known professionally as Emma-Lee, is a Canadian pop singer, songwriter and photographer from Toronto, Ontario. She is considered a
mezzo-soprano
A mezzo-soprano (, ), or mezzo ( ), is a type of classical music, classical female singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A bel ...
and is a self-taught vocalist. She has written hit songs for other artists in both the pop and country genres.
Early life
Emma-Lee was born in Toronto and raised in
Markham, Ontario
Markham () is a city in Regional Municipality of York, York Region, Ontario, Canada. It is approximately northeast of Downtown Toronto. In the Canada 2021 Census, 2021 Census, Markham had a population of 338,503, which ranked it the largest in ...
. She started playing guitar at age 14 and credits her father for teaching her. She soon began writing her own songs.
Published works
Albums
=Never Just a Dream
=
She released her debut album '' Never Just a Dream'' in 2008 to critical acclaim from the Toronto Star and the Globe and Mail. The album was picked up by Bumstead Records and re-released on March 3, 2009. Her vocal style is frequently compared to
k.d. lang
Kathryn Dawn Lang (born November 2, 1961), known by her stage name k.d. lang (stylised in all lowercase), is a Canadian pop and country singer-songwriter and occasional actress. Lang has won Juno Awards and Grammy Awards for her musical pe ...
,
Norah Jones
Norah Jones ( ; born Geethali Shankar; March 30, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She has won several awards for her music and, , has sold more than 53 million records worldwide. '' Billboard'' named her the top jazz artist of ...
and Feist. ''No Depression'' magazine described ''Never Just a Dream'' as "an album so full of ideas and potential that it is hard to know how to properly frame a description of its contents. It is a collection of songs that is far more than the sum of its influences" and dubbed her "the voice to remember from 2009."
Emma-Lee's song "That Sinking Feeling" was featured as the single of the week on iTunes Canada.
In November 2016 she released her first Christmas recording "It Won't Be Christmas" (by songwriters Karen Kosowski &
Julie Crochetière
Julie Crochetière (born July 10, 1980) is a Canadian singer, songwriter, and pianist.
Career
Julie Crochetière began playing piano at the age of six and continued her studies for another eight years. When she was thirteen she wrote her first so ...
) to radio and iTunes.
= ''Backseat Heroine''
=
On February 7, 2012, she released her long-awaited second album '' Backseat Heroine'', co-produced by Emma-Lee, Karen Kosowski and Marc Rogers. The album features collaborations with
Nicole Atkins
Nicole Atkins (born October 1, 1978) is an American singer-songwriter. Her influences include 1950s crooner music, 1960s psychedelia, soul music, and the Brill Building style of writing. Atkins has been compared to Roy Orbison and singers from t ...
,
Jill Barber
Jill Barber (born Gillian Grace Barber; February 6, 1980) is a Canadian singer-songwriter. Originally associated with the folk-pop genre, she has performed vocal jazz and pop music on her more recent albums.Luke Doucet
Luke Doucet (born June 9, 1973) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist. He has written and performed as a solo artist and as a member of the indie rock band Veal and the folk rock band Whitehorse.
In 2006 and 2011, Doucet was nominated fo ...
. Most of the album was tracked at The Chalet, a studio near Uxbridge, Ontario. ''Backseat Heroine'' blends multiple musical genres including pop, country, soul and rock. According to her online biography, "Emma-Lee's goal was to make a record that lived and breathed in its own world and could cross genres while still being a soundscape that was complete from start to finish."
Discography
Albums
* 2009: ''Never Just a Dream'' ( Bumstead Records)
* 2012: ''Backseat Heroine'' (eOne Music Canada)
* 2017: ''Fantasies: Volume 1'' (Special Agent)
Singles
Awards and nominations
* 2014, won for best female vocalist in NOW Magazine's best of Toronto feature.
* 2013, her album Backseat Heroine won "Best Adult Contemporary Album" and the video for "Shadow of a Ghost" was nominated for "Best Short Form Music Video" for the 12th annual Independent Music Awards.
* 2013, her album Backseat Heroine won the 12th annual Independent Music Awards Vox Pop Fan Choice Award for "Best Adult Contemporary Album" and the video for "Shadow of a Ghost" won the Independent Music Awards Vox Pop Fan Choice Award for "Best Short Form Music Video."
* 2013, won for best female vocalist in NOW Magazine's best of Toronto feature.
* 2012, nominated for a
CBC Radio 3
CBC Radio 3 is a Canadian digital radio station operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, which plays a relatively freeform mix of indie rock, indie pop, alternative hip hop, folk, country and electronic music.
The service, which la ...
BUCKY award in the category of Hottest Pipes.
* 2010, Emma-Lee's song "Until We Meet Again" from the album ''Never Just a Dream'' won in the 9th annual Independent Music Awards as "best love song".
Bomb Girls
''Bomb Girls'' is a Canadian television drama that debuted on January 4, 2012, on Global and Univision Canada in Spanish. The plot profiles the stories of four women working in a Canadian munitions factory during World War II, beginning in 1941. ...
''
* "Pick Me Up, Dust Me Off" in CBC's ''Heartland'' - performed by
Carleton Stone
Carleton Stone is a Canadian singer-songwriter based in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. After recording three albums as a solo artist, Stone joined forces in 2015 with musicians Dylan Guthro and Breagh Mackinnon to form the p ...
* "Never Just a Dream" in CBC's '' 18 to Life'' and ''Alias''
* "That Sinking Feeling" in Tyler Perry's ''
Why Did I Get Married Too?
''Why Did I Get Married Too?'' is a 2010 American comedy-drama film directed by Tyler Perry and starring Janet Jackson, Tyler Perry, Tasha Smith, Jill Scott, Louis Gossett Jr., Malik Yoba, Michael Jai White, Sharon Leal, Richard T. Jones, Lamman ...
''soundtrack IMDB.com. Retrieved August 2011
* "Shot In The Dark" in HBO's ''
Bloodletting and Miraculous Cures
''Bloodletting & Miraculous Cures'' is a short story collection by Vincent Lam, published in 2006. The book, inspired by Lam's own experiences in medical school and as a professional physician, is a volume of interconnected short stories about t ...
'', Lifetime's ''
Dance Moms
''Dance Moms'' is an American reality television series that premiered on Lifetime (TV network), Lifetime on July 13, 2011. Created by Collins Avenue Productions, the show followed the training and careers of children in dance and show business ...
'', promotional ad for FX's ''Wilfred'', 2014 feature film '' The Scarehouse''
* "I Could Live With Dying Tonight" in NBC's ''
Saving Hope
''Saving Hope'' is a Canadian supernatural medical drama television series set in Toronto in the fictional hospital Hope Zion. The series stars Erica Durance and Michael Shanks. The show's premise originated with Malcolm MacRury and Morwyn Br ...
Julie Crochetière
Julie Crochetière (born July 10, 1980) is a Canadian singer, songwriter, and pianist.
Career
Julie Crochetière began playing piano at the age of six and continued her studies for another eight years. When she was thirteen she wrote her first so ...
Collaborations
* sings backing vocals on the album "Let Me Prove It To You" by Steve Strongman (2014)
* sings backing vocals on the album "Rustbucket" by Sean Pinchin (2013)
* sings on "I Put a Spell On You" and "Ne Me Quitte Pas" on
Jesse Cook
Jesse Arnaud Cook (born November 28, 1964) is a Canadian guitarist. He is a Juno Award winner, ''Acoustic Guitar'' Player's Choice Award silver winner in the Flamenco Category, and a three-time winner of the Canadian Smooth Jazz award for Guita ...
's ''The Blue Guitar Sessions'' album (2012)
* sings a duet with country music artist Josh Macumber on his song "Tomorrow" (Josh Macumber Was Here, 2012)
* sings on "It Was You" by Peter Katz (Still Mind Still, 2012)
* sings on
Jill Barber
Jill Barber (born Gillian Grace Barber; February 6, 1980) is a Canadian singer-songwriter. Originally associated with the folk-pop genre, she has performed vocal jazz and pop music on her more recent albums.Rob Szabo's song "Something Like Me" (Rob Szabo, 2011)