EMILIE: The Trailblazer Wahine in Aotearoa UK Garage
I first heard EMILIE's tune “Generations” when I was overseas in April this year. I could not comprehend that such an unreal UK Garage (UKG) track came out of my hometown, Ōtautahi. Then I found out that the chick behind these beats was younger than me! I’m not ageist at all, but I’m only 23. So that was another “holy shit!” moment. After all of those wee revelations, I had to sit down with Emily Whitnall, otherwise known as EMILIE, and find out more about the local legend.
Photos by Lucy Harcourt
Hailing from Ōtautahi, Aotearoa, the 21 year old Emily Whitnall has already made her mark on New Zealand’s DJing and producing scene. While EMILIE may have only hopped on the decks last year for real, her musical roots are deeply sowed. “I’ve always been around music from such a young age. I played the piano, trumpet, and drums and was involved in lots of musical groups,” she shares. EMILIE explained how her musicality shifted into the DJing and producing realm by saying that she got her first DJ controller in high school. “I didn’t really enjoy playing by myself so I really got into it in 2022 in my Division St flat with all my good mates which was the flat that also created the Only Clangs boys,” she discloses.
EMILIE describes her own music style as being “very joyful and happy. It’s nothing too serious, just a whole lot of fun.” Drawing inspiration from the whole music scene in the UK, some of EMILIE’s musical influences are Interplanetary Criminal, Main Phase, Breaka, Bakey, and Nia Archives, among many more. Additionally, EMILIE mentioned that “Peggy Gou is a big inspo through her style and fashion sense.”
UK Garage, abbreviated as UKG, has seen a resurgence in its popularity in the last couple of years. Mixmag referenced the notable UK #1 “speed garage-inspired track with a Korg M1 organ bassline” that shot to the top of the charts in the summer of 2022 which is none other than Interplanetary Criminal and Eliza Rose’s “B.O.T.A (Baddest Of Them All)” in an article this year titled “Why the UK Fell Back In Love With Bassline and Speed Garage.” “I love how it's a genre of music that makes everyone come together as one, no matter if you just like singing along to pop music with your friends or love listening to the nice basslines in 140, UKG has something for everyone,” EMILIE explains.
EMILIE’s debut single “Introduction” released in 2022 which introduced her sound to the scene as a producer. But it was her tune “Generations'' that was released in April this year that made listeners’ ears and eyes curious about the up and coming UKG producer. As I am writing this article, “Generations” has nearly 70,000 streams on Spotify. In EMILIE’s music career, she shares that “the success of “Generations” and all the amazing support from George FM” has been her favourite moment so far. “I am still trying to process the success as it wasn’t what I was expecting. But I’m beyond grateful for all the support I have got since that drop. I want to give a massive thanks to Sin and Brook and the George FM family for the insane support as well. I wouldn’t have gotten to this point without them” she shares.
EMILIE didn’t stop there. In June 2023, Gimme A Break Records released EMILIE’s tune “Get Down In The Car” which flawlessly championed her UKG sound. Moreover, you can’t deny how unreal EMILIE’s edits are. Newly uploaded on Soundcloud, her “SEXY BACK (GARAGE FLIP)” track as well as her “BARBIE GURL SPEED GARAGE” edit exemplify the artist’s playful and innovative personality
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When asking about EMILIE’s production process, she tells me that “it is mainly of inspiration. I get most of my inspiration from social media, like seeing someone’s new tune on Instagram or seeing something cool on TikTok. I create most of my songs from random spurts of energy. If I’m not feeling a tune, I won’t push it,” she affirms.
Ōtautahi’s music scene is vast and full of an insane amount of local talent. “There’s such a large amount of support towards each other. It is such an awesome community that I have felt very welcomed into,” EMILIE shares. Beyond her hometown, EMILIE has also played gigs in Queenstown, Wanaka, Dunedin, and Wellington and shares that she’s received such amazing support around the motu. EMILIE’s favourite gig to date was her Garage Sale set in Wellington. “It was such an awesome and supportive crowd!” The whole set from this gig can be found on EMILIE’s YouTube channel which is linked below.
EMILIE also voices that “Aotearoa has such an awesome music scene which is just getting bigger and bigger. I can’t wait to see where it ends up.” This summer is heating up for the DJ/producer as she is on some of Aotearoa’s biggest lineups such as Rhythm & Vines, Rhythm & Alps, and Hidden Lakes. “I am buzzing, I cannot wait! I am very honoured to be a part of these festivals,” she exclaims. EMILIE reveals that “this has always been a dream so it's pretty unreal to be involved. See you on the Cellar stage at RnV!”
Nothing seems to be slowing down for EMILIE and you can trust that we’ll all be along for the ride on the dancefloor. When asking EMILIE about what she is most excited about, she said that “I am very excited for the music I am working on and releasing. Also, I am very excited about what the future holds for my music career.”
If you’re wanting to stay tuned with what EMILIE gets up to, her Instagram @emiliemusic___ is the main channel to follow her on.
You can also find EMILIE on Facebook and TikTok.
EMILIE’s tunes and edits can be found on most platforms like Spotify, Bandcamp, and Soundcloud.