MOP STAR

FROM EDINBURGH LOOS TO ALBERT HALL

- BY RECORD REPORTER

A PERFORMER who used to sing while mopping toilet floors in an Edinburgh bar has performed at London's Royal Albert Hall.

James Emmanuel was born and raised in Nigeria and moved to Scotland after the death of his dad in 2012.

On arrival in the capital, he took a job mopping floors and cleaning toilets in a sports bar.

James, 35, sang in the gospel choir at the church in Nigeria where his dad was a preacher but never saw it as a career.

But singing while mopping the loos turned into an incredible life in music, one that has seen him perform at one of our most famous venues as part of the BBC Proms.

He said: “I would sing more for my own sanity because I hated the fact that there were so many people there, the toilets were always disgusting, and they'd be talking about football, and having arguments.

“And I'm just like, ‘ugh”. So I'd be mopping away, singing.”

He was often met with sarcasm but a chance encounter changed his life.

James said: “This guy’s like, ‘Oh, don't give up your day job, and being quite cheeky.

“I looked at him, smiled, and I just kept singing and mopping. Then there was another man in the toilet, he’s just finished peeing, and then he walked to me and said, ‘I've never met anyone like you before.