"YOU'VE GOT TO LIVE TO MAKE SONGS" | BACKSTAGE AT TRNSMT WITH JAMES EMMANUEL |

INTERVIEW | JAMES EMMANUEL by Anne Kelly & Ella Dowell

Back in November, Ella and I had the opportunity to pop along to the prestigious Scottish Music Awards at the Barrowland Ballroom. One of the evening’s highlights was seeing James Emmanuel accept the Spotlight Award, followed by a stunning performance that hit the soul of everybody in attendance. Before the ceremony, we even had the chance for a quick chat, and safe to say, we – along with many others – have doted on his charm ever since.

What felt like a breakthrough moment for James following the release of his debut EP – A Time To Heal – has only snowballed into 2026. The trajectory has continued to blow up: a sold-out hometown headline show, a second EP – Good Man – out now, a supporting slot with the legendary Nile Rodgers (who coincidentally is literally playing the main stage as we chat to James), and now performing on the BBC Introducing stage at Scotland’s biggest music festival TRNSMT.

Unfortunately, Friday on Glasgow Green was more than a wee bit dreich. However, it would take a bit more than ‘A Little Rain’ to keep Ella and I away (disclaimer: it was a lot of rain). Armed with a pint and a poncho, we were ready to get lost in the soulful joy of James Emmanuel. After his set, we caught up with James for what proved to be one of the funnest moments of our weekend.

“It’s been crazy. There’s been just so much exciting stuff. I mean, where do I even begin? I’ve got three dates with Nile Rodgers. We’re going to Europe this year for the first time, and my second EP is coming out next week.”

James Emmanuel (Anne Kelly/Northern Exposure)

Family, Grounding, and Nappy Duties

Following the death of his father, James moved from Nigeria to Scotland 16 years ago with the intention of supporting his family and taking the pressure off his mother: “I just came here to work, paying my brothers and sisters their fees and stuff.”

He tells us how proud his family are of him, which only makes him even more endearing: “I think the thing that makes me most happy is the fact that you make a decision to further someone else’s ambition, and you end up finding your own. That’s the thing that’s been so special.”

Chatting about his sold-out London show at Colours Hoxton as part of SXSW London, James tells us, “We had Zach Polanski all of a sudden just turn up, and there were a few Labour MPs there. You could get lost in the hype of those types of things, but when I go home, it grounds me.”

It’s apparent that at his core, James is a family man. “It was the first time I felt a bit of nostalgia,” he laughs. “My mum was like, ‘Have you warmed up today? How’s your voice? Have some ginger, take some honey.'”

What makes James so charming is that he doesn’t try to pretend to be somebody he’s not. He’s a sensitive family guy who values his partner and kids above anything else. This theme is all over his songwriting; at the end of the day, he is a father who wants to make sure his kids grow up in a secure environment.

“As soon as I leave here and finish with all this celebrity stuff, I’ve got to go home and change a lot of nappies. I can guarantee you as soon as I walk through that door, it’ll be, ‘Hello? How was it? Great, right. Here are the kids,'” he laughs.

Even on stage, his admiration for his family is the backbone of what he does – from introducing‘ Brothers & Sisters’ (about imagining his daughter bringing a man home one day and hoping he treats her right) to ‘Good To Me’ which he dedicates to his woman at home for supporting his dreams. Committment never sounded so sexy.

“My whole younger life – from my teens until I was 28 or 29 – all I did was try to fit into places where I just never fitted. I was constantly trying, like, ‘Look at me, I’m here. Come on, why don’t you like me?’ It wasn’t until I had my son that I realised one day that something had changed.

When my son was about one and a half, he jumped on the bed while I was sleeping and kissed me on the cheek. That’s how I woke up. I just looked at him, and after he left, I asked myself, ‘What did I do to deserve that?’ Nothing. I realised for the first time that all I needed to do was just wake up in the morning, and that was good enough. I didn’t need to be anything else.”

Defying the Scottish Weather

Moving on to today’s performance, we have to acknowledge the torrential weather, which naturally left TRNSMT a shadow of its usual busy self. Regardless, people flocked to the stage, and for 30 minutes, the rain felt like a minor inconvenience. James’ voice and passion rip through every single performance, and we aren’t alone in this feeling.

“I went outside before my show and I was like, ‘Well, there’s only two people here—the guy smoking a cigarette and his pal.’ But I was like, you know what? I don’t care. I’m just going to have a good time. I kid you not, before we hit the first song, the whole place was full.”

People were vibing and completely lost in the music throughout James’ set. “It made me really happy to see that they stayed in the rain. When I first came out and it was raining, I thought, I need to give them something to make it worth their while. I just went for it, and I’m glad they enjoyed it.”

Comparing it to the show he played with Nile Rodgers less than 24 hours previous in Telford – in a very different climate – he shares: “It was the same yesterday in the sunshine. It was probably too hot to play because they had all these machines on stage plus the sun, so it was incredibly hot. We had to stop for a water break. But when I played ‘Time’, this guy in the audience, Philip, was just bawling his eyes out with his wife there. He told me, ‘I just needed to hear that song today‘.

I kept thinking about all those things when I came today. I thought, how could I play like that in Telford and not play like that at home? That would be a disgrace. You’ve got to give it the same energy, and I’m glad you guys enjoyed it. It was fun seeing you sing it.”

Inside the Brand New EP

Turning to the brand new EP Good Man – out now – James tells us, “I think this is the first project I’ve put out where I would say all four songs are my favourites. I sat with them for a long time and I actually wondered, ‘Am I giving this away too soon? Should I wait for an album?’ But they show different strands of my palate, and that’s why I love it.”

He continues: “‘Time’ is the classic soul stuff. Then you have ‘Good Man’, which is a little bit more country and rootsy. Then you have ‘Bridge Over the Tears I’ve Cried’, which is the lead single. That song brings it back to my younger days and the girl I was seeing at the time. I was supposed to get a record deal when we met, but the deal fell through. So off she went. We had a whole house with a cat and everything, and she just left it all there. It left me wondering, ‘What am I going to do with my life right now? This is seven years of my life.’

That’s where the song comes from. When I started it, it was supposed to be a sad song, but I remember saying to myself, ‘No, this needs to be a celebration.’ I’m so glad she left, because if she hadn’t, I wouldn’t have met my partner, had my kids, and found this fire. You’ve got to live to make songs, so that one stands out a bit to me because it shows the progression of the journey. But if I had to pick a favourite to listen to, it would be ‘Good to Me’ because it’s a celebration of love and it’s just so much fun.”

With a crazy year having just played out, curiosity naturally led to “what’s next” for James Emmanuel?

“I am thinking about an album. There is so much music coming. With the new EP, I had this rush of about six weeks of just insane levels of creativity. We just dialed in and wrote. For those six weeks, I was going to bed at about three o’clock in the morning because 12am to 3am is when I’m at my optimum creative best. I just wrote and wrote. Looking at the songs yesterday, I just loved what it represents.”

Continuing, James tells us: “What I want to do with my music is make sure everybody’s story is in it. I don’t want it to be selfish, because music is not always about the writer; you can share somebody else’s journey. There are songs on there about one of my best friends who is gay. When we first met, everyone kind of wondered, ‘Is this going to work out?’ But he’s like family. We went to California and went to a thrift shop, and the lady there suddenly started acting a bit weird. I was getting angry, and he was telling me to calm down. I wrote a song about that experience. There are also songs about motherhood, life, and just being a dad—things that people can truly identify with.”

Naturally, the catch-up had to come to a conclusion somewhere, but we can say with confidence that we could chat with James Emmanuel all day. His music, his charm, and his humbleness are so endearing and make him instantly likeable. He’s honest, relatable, and bubbling with natural talent that deserves the world. It might only be our first year of having this man on our radar, but he will struggle to get rid of us now.