In the past two years, you may have heard the name “Laufey” somewhere or have heard the song “From The Start.” You may have seen men desperate for female recognition own her vinyl while reading feminist literature and drinking matcha (which she has written a song about, “Mr. Eclectic”). But who is the Icelandic singer who isn’t quite solely jazz, but has a bit of pop mixed into her music? And how do you pronounce her name? Loff-ee? Laeu-fee?
Laufey (pronounced “lay-vay”) Lín Bing Jónsdóttir was born April 23rd, 1999, along with her identical twin sister Junia. Ever since she was a young girl, she has been around music, learning the piano at four years old and the cello at eight. When she was fifteen, she participated in Island Got Talent (Iceland’s “Got Talent” division), where she ended up becoming one of the finalists. The following year, she went on “The Voice Island” (Icelandic “The Voice”), where she was a semi-finalist.
On April 6th, 2020, she released her debut single “Street By Street.” A year later, on April 30th, 2021, she released her debut EP “Typical of Me” which included “Street By Street” and six other tracks including “Magnolia”, “Like The Movies”, and “I Wish You Love”, which was a remake of French pop song “Que reste-t-il de nos amours?” by Lucienne Boyer. The EP received a positive reception from multiple music reviewers.
On August 26th, 2022, she released her debut studio album “Everything I Know About Love”. Notable tracks include “Dear Soulmate”, “Falling Behind”, and “Just Like Chet”. A deluxe version was released on October 14th with three additional tracks. In March of 2023, she released her live album “A Night at the Symphony.” “A Night at the Symphony” was in collaboration with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra and featured songs from “Typical of Me” and “Everything I Know About Love,” along with a few special cover songs.
Her second studio album, “Bewitched,” was released on September 8th, 2023. It features her most popular song to date, “From The Start.” A deluxe version, “Bewitched: The Goddess Edition,” was released on March 6th, 2024, and included four more songs, including “Goddess.” “Bewitched” was nominated for the Grammy for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album, Laufey’s first nomination. It won, thus awarding Laufey with her first Grammy.
This summer, she released her most recent studio album, “A Matter of Time,” which was recently nominated for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album at the Grammys. She just completed the “A Matter of Time” tour in North America, which visited sixteen states and three cities in Canada. Suki Waterhouse opened up every show, and certain stops had special guests. Guests included Hozier, British pop singer PinkPantheress, global girl group KATSEYE, and Benson Boone.
Her music is a cohesive blend of classical, jazz, and modern pop music. The majority of her work is incredibly personal to her, and her songs are beautifully written with poetic lyrics. One misconception about her library is that Laufey only sings sad, heartbreaking songs, but this simply is not true! Laufey writes about all kinds of love, whether it be self-love, romantic love, or platonic love. She has songs about self-image and leaving behind toxic relationships. Songs about friendships, the good and the ugly. She has an unreleased satirical song about her twin. She makes holiday music as well.
Her songs have meaningful lyrics along with puns. She doesn’t just make sad songs; she makes music for people who love love. Music that you can come back from a terrible day and sit down and listen to while drinking a warm cup of tea, and it will make you feel like Laufey is right there next to you and comforting you. It feels like getting a hug. And Laufey is incredibly happy to make people feel that way with her music.
Along with being a successful artist, Laufey does a lot of charity work. This year, she founded The Laufey Foundation, which helps young musicians get their start in the industry and have a chance at success. It gives grants and quality equipment to youth musical programs around the entire world. Many orchestras receive support from the foundation, and it’s Laufey’s goal to make classical music accessible to those with potential who may not have that accessibility.
She is also a devout reader and has started her own book club. Each month,h she posts a new book for members to read, and select libraries across the country have meetups to discuss it. However, she has made it so that if your library doesn’t have a Laufey book club chapter, you can still discuss the monthly book online with other Lauvers. Some libraries with Laufey book club chapters even offered limited edition Laufey library cards for National Library Card Sign-Up Month.
Laufey is an incredible singer, an artistic genius, and a beautiful person. She is a creative visionary who truly loves her artistry and music. Her music is like a warm hug on a harshly cold day. She has accomplished so much within just a few years, and she will only become a bigger star in the angelic night sky.
Song Recommendations:
“From The Start” (Bewitched)
“Bewitched” (Bewitched)
“Like The Movies” (Typical Of Me)
“Snow White” (A Matter of Time)
“Just Like Chet” (Everything I Know About Love)
“Best Friend” (Typical of Me)
“Silver Lining” (A Matter of Time)
“Above the Chinese Restaurant” (Everything I Know About Love)
“Tough Luck” (A Matter of Time)
“Too Little, Too Late” (A Matter of Time)
“Sabotage” (A Matter of Time)
“Best Friend” (Typical of Me)
“Dear Soulmate” (Everything I Know About Love)
“Lovesick” (Bewitched)
