EMA I'U
MUSICIAN- POET - ACTOR - EVENTS
EMA I'U (pronounced Emma ee 'u) aka Ema Barton is a full time creative of Sāmoan/ Pākehā heritage based in Tāmaki Makaurau, Auckland New Zealand. She dabbles in song, poetry, community events and screen production. Ema performs regularly with her cover bands Lucky May & Coco-Rocky & is known as ‘The Queen of Open Mic’ having run multiple events over the last 9 years.
Ms Barton has a passion for serving her community & has formed Holding Space Aotearoa Charitable Trust for this purpose. She coordinated the recording of the compilation album SW4CA vol.1 and vol.2 as part of a community climate action project, with vol.3 in development. Ema has been writing songs since she was 12, developing a strong soulful voice & distinctive guitar style. Her strong performance skills come from a background in acting for screen & theatre, & she has been teaching guitar & singing privately for the last 10 years. Dabbling in R&B, soul, jazz, pop & rock; Ema is focusing on a variety of recorded projects with her debut singles Midnight Mistress, Top Self and Flower of Life out now and an album in development.