Emily Nokes | |
|---|---|
 Emily Nokes performs with Tacocat at Sasquatch Music Festival in 2014 | |
| Born | |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, writer |
| Known for | Lead singer of Tacocat |
Emily Nokes is a writer, artist, music critic and musician. She has been the singer of the feminist pop-punk band Tacocat since 2007. [1] She is also the music editor for Bust Magazine, and the former music editor at The Stranger [2] from 2012 to 2015.
Nokes is from Butte, Montana [3] and started writing songs when she was a child. [4]
She moved to Seattle when she was 19 to become a graphic designer. [3] She attended The Art Institute of Seattle where she met the bandmates who would later form Tacocat. [3]
Nokes is the lead singer, tambourine player and a songwriter for Tacocat. Her creative process involves writing down snippets of ideas in a notebook and workshopping them with other bandmates into full songs:
When it’s time to start making new music, my bandmates usually get together and hash together instrumental ideas that they’ll show me via phone recording or practice jam. I then just start thinking about melodies and seeing if any of the lyrics fit, keeping the feeling of the music versus the feeling of the lyrics in mind, though I don’t mind (and sometimes prefer) sad-sounding music paired with silly lyrics or upbeat music paired with darker lyrics. It’s a fun little jigsaw puzzle for each song! Sometimes it snaps together right away, sometimes you have to tinker with it for weeks. [4]
As part of Tacocat, Nokes has received positive recognition from critics, including The Seattle Times, Pitchfork and the AV Club. [5] [6] [7] The Monitor editor Jon LaFollette calls out Nokes' lyrics in support of both blue-collar workers and "mini-feminist anthems". [8] La Sera's Katy Goodman has called Tacocat "the best band in the world." [9]
Nokes' singing voice has been praised for its dynamic range, from "throaty depths to soaring peaks". [10] Music journalist Greil Marcus said "she could be singing in French and you'd come away feeling the same". [11]
Nokes identifies as a feminist [2] [12] and her songs address topics from catcalling to menstruation. [13] She is an activist for queer, anti-racist, and anti-transphobic causes, especially with regards to art:
We need to demand more from everything all the time — for women, for queer folks, for trans folks, for people of color, and for everyone else who lives outside of the standard-issue, mostly-white/mostly-male representation across all platforms of expression. [2]
Nokes is a pro-choice advocate, and wrote a magazine promoting Planned Parenthood after the start of the #ShoutYourAbortion social media campaign. [1] In 2021, she protested outside of the Supreme Court of the United States, promoting the safety of abortion pills. [1] [14]
Nokes lives on Capitol Hill, a neighborhood in Seattle, Washington. [15] She has stated that if she weren't in a band, she would want to be a candy taster. [16]
