My Cantopop Nights: A Memoir in Songs

by Emma-Lee Moss

A story of music, fandom and identity, from the acclaimed singer-songwriter Emma-Lee Moss (a.k.a. Emmy the Great)

For 11-year-old Emma-Lee, the sound of Hong Kong in the summer of 1995 is Cantopop. The Cantopop stars she idolises are everywhere - their images are on every billboard and their music spills from shop speakers onto the streets. When she and her family move to England later that year, Emma-Lee’s love of Cantopop will be pushed underground – the sound and symbol of her secret childhood identity.

My Cantopop Nights is the story of how Emma-Lee found herself in a Hong Kong bar twenty years later, listening to a Cantopop song and realising that this music was her inheritance. It’s about suffering an identity crisis just as the city’s post-colonial tensions erupt into protests. It’s a story of uncanny coincidences, magical thinking and a quest to reconcile the different sides of her Hong Konger and British, Cantopop and indie.

It’s a story of falling in love with a city, its people and its music, while trying to find your own place to belong.

'Captures that era of Hong Kong music with such warmth and clarity... Transcendent and transportive' Angela Hui

‘A wondrous fresh, evocative, self-aware, fantastically light of touch and wholly original’ Sarah Howe

‘An author of exceptional vision... for anyone seeking to understand how complicated, tender histories unfurl in our present – and how art emerges to help us through’ Jessica J. Lee

'Prepare to meet your new favourite playlist' Dan Schreiber

Emma-Lee Moss 2026 (P) Penguin Audio 2026

Genres: Nonfiction, Music, Memoir

Audible Audio

Published June 11, 2026

Reviews

[Soumaya Keynes]

A wonderful exploration of identity, family and music. The writing is so warm and lyrical, the storytelling simultaneously light and deep. And of course I listened to lots of Faye Wong along the way!

[Claire (readwithgzxklair)]

Ever wondered what it's like to grow up as a Hong Kong-Brit, especially during the time of the takeover? Emma-Lee Moss, once known as musician 'Emmy the Great', writes a beautiful, intriguing memoir about her life as someone who doesn't quite feel at home anywhere, often squashing her real thoughts and interests to fit in. From her childhood in Hong Kong to her teenage years in England, and then into adulthood where she deepens her love of music and finds stardom, we follow Emma through a recap of her life so far.

Emma-Lee's love of Cantopop starts in the summer of 1995, when she's just 11 years old. Her and her friends gush over the Cantopop stars, listen to their music on the radio and in the shops, and spend weekends in music stores looking for new albums. But when her family move to England, her love of Cantopop makes her weird, and she decides it's time to let it go.

Many years later, Emma-Lee returns to Cantopop and realises her identity crisis has a lot to do with it. Is she British? Is she Cantonese? And how can she blend both of her heritage and both cultures so she can finally move forward, understanding who she really is?

This memoir is perfect for anyone who knows what it's like to grow up between two worlds, never fit and, and have to figure out who you are and what you want in life. I would say it's also for anyone who has dual nationality or lived abroad as a child, leading to mixed feelings about where your 'real' home is and how your heart can so easily be torn in two. It's for anyone who grew up a little on the edge of friendship groups and anyone who loves music.

It also offers insight into life in Hong Kong under British rule and how things have changed in Hong Kong since the handover in 1997. So, if you want to learn a bit more about Hong Kong, life, culture and food, this could also be a great read for you. It's also worth mentioning how her family is always spoken about throughout the book, with funny stories, the ups and downs of family life and, although dotted across the world, how important it is for family to support each other.

I have read so many books this year about people emigrating from Taiwan, Hong Kong and China to America or England, and I'll admit this book took a while to get into because I felt a bit 'burned out' by the topic, so I offer my apologies to Emma-Lee and the publishing team for my delayed review. From my own point of view, this book is almost like a love letter and an apology, but it highlights the warmth of the people, the love of the music and the importance of the Hong Kong.

[Andra Semesta]

A beautiful memoir driven by the power of the love for music. Will write more about it after I processed it deeper/make notes on my favourite parts. Really enjoyed delving deeper into the background of one of my favourite musicians/songwriters, Emma-Lee Moss (once known as Emmy the Great), and it definitely makes me want to listen to more Faye Wong and finally tackle my Wong Kar-Wai watchlist, haha.

[Conn Thornton]

such a gorgeous love letter to and faithful document of the vast array of music coming out of Hong Kong either side of the 90s! also a super interesting dissection of how this music Moss grew up alongside informs her connection to this part of her dual identity, and how the music has motivated and shaped political opinion in and around the handover through to the protests of the past few years. powerful and beautifully told!

[James Canham]

Loved this. A very personal look at cantopop that introduced a whole new world of music while also being an interesting memoir. Hope the final copy comes with a playlist as finding some of the tracks online was a little hard.

[Ian Fowles]

A lovely journey through Emma-Lee's life, guided by the music from Hong Kong. Can't wait to dive deeper into Cantopop and to start researching and learning more about Hong Kongs history.