Sometimes you arrive at the party late, and this is one of those occasions. This was released November 23 so it has been out on all platforms for a couple of weeks now, but work has been a bit crazy and I have been chasing my own tail (meow). What we have here today is a single from the interesting Emilie Culshaw, and I will share the press release before heading into my review.

“Emilie Culshaw is a multi-award-winning dark/dream pop artist from Liverpool, UK, known for her emotionally raw storytelling, soul-stirring vocals, and genre-blending sound. Fusing elements of R&B, soul, rock, and blues, her music delivers an intimate yet cinematic experience that resonates deeply with listeners.

Inspired by icons like Lady Gaga, Ariana Grande, Beyoncé, Madison Beer, Olivia Rodrigo, and Taylor Swift, Emilie infuses theatrical energy and emotional depth into every performance. Her distinctive voice, tender yet commanding, anchors lyrics that explore love, vulnerability, personal growth, and inner conflict.

Her breakthrough collaboration with dance producer Mark Moncrieff on the award-winning single “Strong” earned widespread acclaim, including Tune Fountain’s Single of the Year, major playlist placements, and national radio play. Their follow-up track, “The Storm,” continued to showcase her versatility and artistic growth. Recognised as Tune Fountain’s Artist of the Year 2024 and named UK Top Music Influencer 2025, Emilie has cemented her place in the UK music scene.

She has performed at major events such as the Merseyside Woman of the Year Awards 2025 and appeared on television through VIP Boxing with Trinity Entertainment, delivering a standout performance in the boxing ring. Her media presence includes features on BBC and a wide range of interviews and radio appearances.

Now signed to Big Condo Records since September 2024, Emilie is gearing up to release her highly anticipated sophomore single, “Cherry Haze,” on 23rd November 2025. Executive produced by Royzy Rothschild and mixed by Hikstr the Engineer, the track explores themes of unspoken love and longing, wrapped in a haunting dream-pop atmosphere. This follows the success of her debut single, “Trapdoor” a powerful anthem about anxiety and breaking barriers, which hit #1 on the Brazilian radio chart and gained international radio play. She also completed a UK-wide Trapdoor Tour in support of the release.”

My review:

“Cherry Haze” delivers slick dance pop that drifts through the late evening. If this was a drink then it would happily be a Dr. Pepper perhaps, She does tell a tale of love and it has some nice harmonies to hook you in. Production is sharp and she delivers a very radio friendly number, I can see why she is with Big Condo Records and is gaining attention.

I will also review another of her tracks to make up for being late with this one,

“Trapdoor” was my choice for the other track to visit. This one is lyrically interesting, thoughts of depression when you hang over the mental black hole that appears. Emilie presents these deeper lyrics over mental health with a lighter pop style music, a little less dance than “Cherry Haze” but still with a club vibe to it.

In summary “Cherry Haze” sees Emilie Culshaw deliver polished, late-night dance pop with smooth harmonies and radio-ready confidence, while “Trapdoor” balances club-friendly production with strikingly honest reflections on mental health. Together, the tracks showcase an artist who blends emotional depth with mainstream appeal — and one whose growing momentum makes perfect sense.

Love what we do? Rock the Joint Magazine is completely free — no paywalls, no ads ruining the read — just passionate music journalism for 1,000 readers a day. If you enjoy hanging out with us, please consider hitting the “Support Us” button and buying us a coffee on Ko-Fi. Even a small donation genuinely helps keep the magazine running, lets us publish more features, and reminds us that people value independent music writing. And at this time of year a Christmas drink is appreciated.

You can stream music from Emilie Culshaw here

http://www.instagram.com/emilieculshaw

http://www.tiktok.com/emilieculshaw

http://www.x.com/emilieculshaw

http://www.facebook.com/emilieculshaw

http://www.youtube.com/emilieculshaw

By Lorraine Foley

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.