American soprano Julia Bullock is not your standard-issue, rising young operatic diva.

The sound of Bullock’s voice—rich and warm with a smoky undercurrent and glints of steel—is inimitable. She could easily spend her career traveling the world singing standard operatic repertoire. Since graduating from Juilliard in 2015, however, she has put her voice in service to programs that go far beyond the classical repertoire’s usual boundaries.