"New" Artist of the Month for October 2026
Emily Li, aka Emei, is a Chinese-American singer-songwriter. Born in New Jersey, Emei gained an interest in music at the young age of nine. Her musical skills were strong enough for her to compete on Chinese Idol and place third. Following high school, Emei went to Yale University and joined its accapella group Mixed Company.
She released her first single under her artist name in 2021 in collaboration with producer LEXIM, though she officially began releasing music back in 2019. A year later, her single Late to the Party went viral on TikTok and Instagram Reels, helping her gain over 5 million streams. That same year, she would release her debut EP, End of an Era.
In the following two years, Emei would release two more EPs, and in 2026, she would release her fourth EP in June 2026. Currently, Emei has over one million monthly Spotify listeners.
