Emi Noda (野田愛実)

Overview

Emi Noda (野田愛実, born June 17, 1993) is a Japanese singer-songwriter from Matsusaka, Mie Prefecture. Working in J-pop and J-R&B, she writes her own music and also provides songs to other artists. She is widely known for her YouTube cover videos and signed with Avex in 2022.

Career

Early years and amateur activity

Noda began performing as a singer in elementary school and won the Teens Grand Prize at the Yamaha Music Foundation's TEENS' MUSIC FESTIVAL in 2005. She went on to win grand prizes and special awards at many contests and started composing around junior high school age. After graduating from Mie High School, she entered the Department of Architecture in the School of Science and Technology at Meiji University and began performing live, mainly in Shimokitazawa, Tokyo. In 2012 she won a special prize, together with Karin Kawabe and Yuki Ikeda, at King Records' 80th anniversary "Dream Vocal Audition."

2015–2019

In January 2015 she won the grand prix at the ZIP-FM SPOTMUSIC AUDITION in Nagoya. In September of that year she released her first mini-album, Mirai, on ZIP-FM's label ZIP NEXT. In January 2016 she was named one of BARKS's "10 Girl Bands to Watch in 2016," and after graduating from Meiji University she entered its graduate school of architecture.

She was also active on radio, hosting ZIP-FM's Girl's Latte (April 2015–March 2019) and FM NACK5's Noda Emi no Tokimeki Rush Hour (October 2016–March 2017) and Noda Emi no Tokimeki Ichiza (April 2017–March 2018). In December 2017, on Tokimeki Ichiza, she improvised a total of 50 songs based on listeners' emails. In November 2017 she wrote the lyrics and music for Yuka Iguchi's "Kiseki," her first song written for another artist.

She completed her master's program in architecture at Meiji University in March 2018, and from April she performed the ending theme for NHK Tsu's local program Marutto! Mie. In February 2019 she announced the end of Girl's Latte; in March she held a final public recording at the ZIP-FM 18th-floor salon, titled "Girl's Latte Special Live & Talk #Zippunanoda," and the final episode aired on March 29.

2020–2022

In September 2020 she sang the opening theme of the anime Fushigi Dagashiya Zenitendo. From November 2020 she began uploading cover videos to her YouTube channel almost daily, accumulating more than 72 million total views as of October 31, 2024. In 2021 she sang the image song for the national sports festival held in Mie Prefecture, "Mie Tokowaka Kokutai / Mie Tokowaka Taikai." In 2022 she signed with Avex.

2023 onward

On July 14, 2023, she released her pre-debut single "Lost Time" ("Lossutaimu"), the theme song for the TV Asahi New Scenario Award special drama Haikei, Kimyo na Otonari-san. In December she wrote the lyrics and music for "Kimi no Mikata," included on Hey! Say! JUMP's album PULL UP.

On June 16 and 17, 2024, she held her first free one-man live shows since signing with Avex, NodaEmi LIVE 2024 "time", in Osaka and Tokyo. On October 1 she opened her official fan club, "fleur," and on October 15 she began her first tour, NodaEmi 1st Asia Tour "time".

On July 23, 2025, she released her first album, blue. From July 25 to November 23 she held the six-date EMI NODA Asia Tour 2025 "blue"; the opening show in Shanghai drew 900 people and sold out.

Musical style

Noda is a singer-songwriter rooted in J-pop and J-R&B who has been composing since junior high school. Her improvised creation of 50 songs from listener emails, her songwriting for other artists, and her near-daily cover uploads reflect both her broad compositional ability and her vocal skill.