The host of the UK’s top-rated beauty podcast, Emma Gunavardhana, better known as Emma Guns, has created a platform that informs and inspires its listeners by covering relevant topics and welcoming guests who have meaningful and inspiring stories.
Emma’s podcast, The Emma Guns Show, which now has over 300 000 listeners a month, has been her main project since 2016, after over ten plus years of experience working for various magazines, interviewing plenty of celebrities, and gaining insight on the industry.
Her intention has been to craft a resource for her listeners, full of expert insight and credible sources. “I hope the main ‘take away’ for listeners is to feel informed, empowered and uplifted. I hope that what I do in each episode is to ask the questions of my guests that my listeners want the answers to”.
While growing up Emma discovered the transformative power of skincare and makeup through the beauty sections of magazines. Teen years spent dealing with acne and feeling uncomfortable in her own skin were also spent finding a haven in the pages of magazines.
It’s no surprise then that she set out to work as a beauty editor with the magazines that she had read and loved growing up. Working at first with OK! Magazine and continuing on to write for multiple other magazines such as Red, The Sunday Times Style Magazine, The Telegraph, Women’s Health and Stylist, Emma was able to interview a whole host of celebrities and well-known names in the industry. Hearing these stories throughout her career is what inspired her to launch her podcast, creating a space to share these stories with a wide audience.
As the podcast has grown in listeners, the scope of topics also expands, now encompassing mental health, wellness, business, finances, entrepreneurship, and more. The variety of guests that have been welcomed onto the platform has also grown, Emma explains that “it’s been really deliberate to have such a wide range of guests; from former Secret Service agents, consultant dermatologists, psychotherapists and brain surgeons, among many others, because we’re all multi-layered and curious, so I wanted to meet that curiosity by covering as many relevant subjects as possible.”
Her podcast hasn’t just been informative and helpful for listeners, it has also helped Emma herself through some of the issues that she struggles with. Learning from guests and being open about her struggles in the conversations on the platform has been transformative.
“I learn something from every guest who comes on the podcast, but I genuinely wasn’t expecting the podcast to change my life in the way that it has. I wasn’t doing all that well when I started the podcast; I was depressed, not doing well financially and I couldn’t really see the light at the end of the tunnel. I was really curious and wanted to speak to the people I invited on the show because they inspired me but I didn’t anticipate so much of their insights, wisdom and advice rubbing off on me in the way that it is. My guests made me stronger, made me believe in myself and made me take chances I’d never have had the courage to take. It’s been life-changing for me and it’s that kind of energy and dynamic I hope listeners can tap into when they tune in.”