EMMA BRADLEY UNVEILS SELF-PRODUCED EP ‘WINONA’S WORLD’
London-based alternative pop artist Emma Bradley returns with Winona’s World, her first body of work since 2023’s Grow or Die—and her first as a fully independent artist. Following a split from her label and management last year, the EP marks a bold new chapter, self-produced and unfiltered.
Leading the release is “Bad Apple”, a melancholic, vocoder-laced track inspired by Tim Burton’s haunting scores. Built around the concept of love turning toxic, the song explores the emotional fallout of trusting the wrong person.
“‘Bad Apple’ is about loving something so deeply only to discover it was harmful, you bit into a bad apple—something that leaves you alone and broken.”
The emotionally raw single sets the tone for an EP rooted in introspection and abstraction, influenced by the likes of James Blake, Bon Iver, Imogen Heap and Danny Elfman. Bradley reveals that the creative process brought her to the brink of reinvention—even considering a name change. Instead, she channelled her darker emotions into a new character: Winona.
“I gave her all my scariest, most difficult feelings. She says the things I maybe wouldn’t have been brave enough to say myself.”
Winona’s World is set in a cinematic, alternate reality. It delves into what Bradley calls “shadows of a feeling”—emotions too complex to name. Themes of loneliness, queerness, mental health, and abandonment run throughout, reflecting a wider sense of alienation, particularly among younger and marginalised communities. “I want listeners to feel seen,” she says.
From reflections on lost innocence and romantic betrayal, to a piano ballad honoring the comfort of a loyal dog, the EP is Bradley’s most vulnerable and honest work to date.
“This is quintessentially me, It’s the proudest I’ve ever been of my music.”
