diff --git a/packages/gitmoji-changelog-core/src/parser.js b/packages/gitmoji-changelog-core/src/parser.js
index cc299ae..cc04c4f 100644
--- a/packages/gitmoji-changelog-core/src/parser.js
+++ b/packages/gitmoji-changelog-core/src/parser.js
@@ -1,14 +1,28 @@
 const splitLines = require('split-lines')
+const { invert } = require('lodash')
 const groupMapping = require('./groupMapping')
 const emojiMapping = require('./emojiMapping')
 
+const emojiMappingInvert = invert(emojiMapping)
+
 function parseSubject(subject) {
   if (!subject) return {}
 
-  const matches = subject.match(/:(\w*):(.*)/)
-  if (!matches) return { message: subject }
+  let emojiCode
+  let message = subject
 
-  const [, emojiCode, message] = matches
+  const matches = subject.match(/:(\w*):(.*)/)
+  if (matches) {
+    // extract textual emoji
+    [, emojiCode, message] = matches
+  } else {
+    // extract unicode emoji
+    const emoji = subject.substr(0, 1)
+    emojiCode = emojiMappingInvert[emoji]
+    if (emojiCode) {
+      message = subject.substr(1, subject.length)
+    }
+  }
 
   return {
     emojiCode,
diff --git a/packages/gitmoji-changelog-core/src/parser.spec.js b/packages/gitmoji-changelog-core/src/parser.spec.js
index 789706d..7c0988f 100644
--- a/packages/gitmoji-changelog-core/src/parser.spec.js
+++ b/packages/gitmoji-changelog-core/src/parser.spec.js
@@ -21,6 +21,19 @@ describe('commits parser', () => {
     expect(parseCommit(commit)).toEqual(expect.objectContaining(sparklesCommit))
   })
 
+  it('should parse a unicode emoji', () => {
+    const {
+      hash,
+      date,
+      body,
+    } = sparklesCommit
+    const commit = `\n${hash}\n${date}\n✨ Upgrade brand new feature\n${body}\n`
+    const parsed = parseCommit(commit)
+    expect(parsed.emoji).toEqual('✨')
+    expect(parsed.emojiCode).toEqual('sparkles')
+    expect(parsed.message).toEqual('Upgrade brand new feature')
+  })
+
   it('should parse a single commit without a body', () => {
     const {
       hash,