Emma Nuule does not fit neatly into any box. A soprano trained in Puccini’s drama but raised on Whitney Houston and Celine Dion, she has built a career that blurs the line between classical purity and mainstream power. Now, with a debut single scheduled for release in December and a new management deal with Republic International Group, Nuule is positioning herself for a leap from British stages to the global arena.
Her rise has been steady but deliberate. At this year’s National Film Awards and British Restaurant Awards, Nuule delivered the kind of performances that win over both insiders and casual audiences. “It’s the emotion that makes it timeless,” she said in a recent interview. “People don’t have to understand the words to feel the story.” Nuule traces her earliest memory of music to a recording of Swan Lake. At five, she danced to Tchaikovsky in her living room until her mother enrolled her in ballet. Soon after, she discovered opera, singing small roles in productions of Turandot and Carmen. But her breakthrough moment came in 2014, when she won a global talent competition and realised her voice could command not only stages but also audiences.
“I remember the feedback,” she said. “It was the first time I truly understood that what I love doing could bring joy to others.”
Nuule describes herself as a “crossover soprano”—a singer equally comfortable in Puccini’s La Bohème as in gospel standards at her church choir. She credits powerhouse singers outside the operatic tradition—Dion, Streisand, Houston—as early influences, and later found inspiration in Luciano Pavarotti and Maria Callas. “They showed me how much volume and drama a human voice can hold,” she said.
Her daily routine remains rooted in discipline: vocal exercises, lyric study, and constant repertoire review. But when it comes to performance, she admits ritual plays a role. “Before I go on stage, I pray,” she said. “It calms my nerves, and it reminds me that I have nothing to lose.”
Nuule’s recent signing with Republic International Group represents more than a business move. It signals an effort to scale her career beyond British audiences. Republic, which manages a roster of entertainment and media ventures across Africa, Europe, and the U.S., will oversee both her live bookings and recorded work. The partnership arrives as Nuule prepares to release her first single this winter—a move that could introduce her voice to streaming audiences worldwide.
For a genre often described as traditional, her outlook is modern. “Opera isn’t about staying fresh,” she said. “It’s about being true to the emotion. Heartache, tragedy, love—those stories don’t age.”
Beyond recording, Nuule dreams of performing film soundtracks, live television broadcasts, and eventually singing at the Royal Albert Hall. A personal ambition is to one day join Andrea Bocelli on tour. “That would be the ultimate collaboration,” she said.
Yet legacy, not fame, seems to anchor her goals. “I want to be remembered for spreading love through music and faith,” she said. “If my journey brings people closer to God, then I’ve done what I was meant to do.”
