Emanuella's voice to be used for Nigerian-talking doll

Following tremendous success with the launch of Toya, the Jamaican patois-talking doll, Saffron Jackson is again making bold moves with her line of Zuree Dolls.

The Jamaica-born teacher, who is living in the United Kingdom, told THE STAR that plans are afoot to launch a Nigerian speaking doll featuring the voice of Nigerian child sensation Emanuella, who recently concluded the Laugh Out Loud comedy tour in Jamaica. 

“I thought Emanuella would be the perfect voice for my [Nigerian] doll because she represents what my brand is about. It’s about empowering young girls, making them feel confident, feeling comfortable with who they are, and Emanuella is actually the epitome of that,” Jackson said.

Like Toya, the Nigerian-speaking doll will be highlighting her culture in a positive light, while providing an empowering image for little Nigerian girls to feel good about themselves. 

Through her management team, young Emanuella told THE STAR that she is excited to be a part of the project.

“I’m excited about the fact that it would give my fellow black kids confidence in themselves and help promote African culture,” Emanuella said. “It would also be an educating experience for kids because the voice of the doll would reveal a lot of exciting, interesting and of course funny things about ethnicity."

The doll is set to hit the market between the end of October and early November, in time for the Christmas holidays.

Like all Zuree products, the Nigerian dolls will be available online at www.zuree.co.uk. It will also be in some small retail outlets across the UK, Canada, and America. Jackson is also trying to get the Nigerian dolls on the shelves in Jamaica and Nigeria.

As for Toya, the Jamaican Patois talking doll, she will be available in stores across the island come September month end, but the price will be at the discretion of retailers.

Jackson said her dream is to see her doll line rivalling big names such as Disney, so that children from all ethnicities can have strong representations of themselves and feel beautiful. That dream is starting to take shape.

“The dolls continue to do very well. I have expanded, so now the dolls are available in America. I am now in discussions with Canadian retailers as well, who would like to have the doll, and I am now in discussion with a major toy company,” Jackson said.