“Toronto singer Emma-Lee, 25, is blessed with a delicate yet potent sound that harkens to kd lang and Madeleine Peyroux. Her brand of ethereal pop has doo-wop, country and blues accents bolstered by handclaps, folky guitar and cat-and-mouse strings. And she’s a top-shelf songwriter, serving up tunes that explore all things romantic – jealousy, rebounding, May-December pairings – with Rickie Lee Jones honesty, Amy Winehouse sauciness and rapper-slick
immortality…She’s destined for big things.”
– The Toronto Star, 4/4 review by Ashante Infantry
“Clearly, Never Just a Dream, is an auspicious beginning. The languid Where You Want to Be promises more to come. “I won’t settle, no not a little bit,” Emma-Lee sings, “you don’t get me, I’m not the type to quit.” Evidently so. ”
– The Globe & Mail, ***1/2 star ‘disc of the week’ review by Brad Wheeler
“‘Emma-Lee’s debut, Never Just a Dream, sounds like it could have been born somewhere between San Antonio, Texas and Sao Paulo, Brazil. It’s a big, luscious album with a touch of Patsy Cline’s country heartbreak set against Astrud Gilberto’s ease-and-flow bossa nova. We love it.”
– iTunes Canada
“‘Lyrics born from painful personal experience combined with soothing, soaring melodies make this freshman effort one of the more impressive debuts this year.”
– Mark Rheaume, CBC Radio
“The luscious landscape of “That Sinking Feeling” sets the proper mood for what you’re going to get; a genre-defying balance of songs that are flawlessly produced to compliment one of Canada’s best-undiscovered secrets: Emma-Lee’s voice.”
– Oxyfication.net, Justin Holt
“She’s got a strong, emotive voice, and the production is lush and natural-sounding…Lots of jazzy vocalists can sing nice, comfortable music, but not many play with the conventions creatively, which is where she shines.”
– NOW Magazine, by Benjamin Boles
“‘Emma-Lee is quite clearly a polished and gifted performer and she certainly delivers her songs with inherent tenderness, cute breathiness and ballsy finesse. ‘Never Just A Dream’ is quality and class – an emotionally charged journey, a sensitively portrayed trip into hearts and minds.”
– toxicpete.co.uk