After more than five years as a duo (and more), Gem & Tauri “have mutually and lovingly” elected to end their collaborative project.
Fans of Gem & Tauri have been met with sad news today. The house and techno duo consisting of Emma Montalvo and Courtney Simmons will disband by the end of this month.
“After many heavy hearted conversations, We are closing this beautiful chapter of Gem & Tauri,” reads a joint statement the duo posted to Instagram. “We will be playing out our last couple shows together and wanted to give you our love and gratitude as you very much deserve, after years of support & all the amazing memories we shared together.”
Montalvo and Simmons will perform two more dates before going their separate ways. The first is tomorrow, Saturday, January 18 at The Midway in San Francisco. The second is on Groove Cruise, which sets sail from Miami on January 23 and returns on January 26 after a stop at Labadee, Haiti.
Montalvo is the wife of superstar DJ and producer Seven Lions, and Simmons was their girlfriend. Gem & Tauri formed when he needed an opener for a show at The Mission Ballroom in Denver at the end of 2019. The two — who had DJed separately up to that point — improvised a set that went over well enough to mark the beginning of a fully fledged project.
During COVID lockdowns, Gem & Tauri continued to gain traction via livestreams, and they’ve released records like 2020’s All You Need EP and 2023’s Crownless EP. Their most popular singles are their remix of “Miss You” featuring GG Magree by Seven Lions (who is also credited on the new rendition) and “Hear My Call” featuring Tyler Graves.
At the end of 2023, fans noticed that Montalvo and Simmons had unfollowed each other on Instagram — although they had continued to perform together. In the comments of a January 2024 Instagram post, Simmons responded to someone telling her they missed her at a Seven Lions show in Aspen, Colorado, saying, “I will probably not be at his shows for a while. I’ll speak on it more when I’m ready.”
“This decision was not made lightly, letting go is never easy but we understand it’s the right step as we shift our focus to new personal and creative chapters,” wrote Montalvo in an individual statement. “I feel blessed to deliver this message from a place of love and peace, knowing that this decision honors the journey we’ve shared.”
“After some heavyhearted conversations and the eventual conscious uncoupling at the end of 2023, Emma & I wanted to continue the music project together as long as we could, as friends that will always love each other,” wrote Courtney individually. “We were able to have fun healing and growing in 2024 while grieving the changing dynamics. After a year of personal growth and each of us taking the space to search deep our hearts for what was best for us, we have decided to pursue our own separate adventures in music and fashion and close this beautiful chapter of Gem & Tauri.”
Neither Emma Montalvo nor Courtney Simmons have shared specific plans regarding their next steps as artists, or for their other pursuits.
