How Laufey Bewitched Us
January 6 | Written By Jess Wilkinson
When the listener hears one of Laufey’s songs, it is understandable to mistake her for a singer from the 50s or 60s. And as is evident from her influences, this is exactly her goal.
For some of Gen-Z, the only time jazz is likely to have popped up in their lexicon is in reference to something along the lines of “lo-fi jazz beats to study/relax to” (lo-fi is a subgenre of bedroom pop that incorporates samples and low-key production), or perhaps when learning about the roaring 20s, or even when discussing older music with older generations. But Laufey has done the unexpected, and brought jazz to the attention of gen-z. She has stated that she hopes to do for jazz what Taylor Swift did for country, and with 1.9 million followers on Instagram, 3.2 million followers on TikTok, and over 13 million monthly listeners on Spotify, it seems that she has done exactly that.
The Chinese-Icelandic singer-songwriter, pioneer of modern jazz and bearer of a notoriously difficult to pronounce name (it’s LAY-vey, not LAW-fee or LAOW-fee, as it is often mispronounced) has a voice and musical sound that does not belong to the 21st century. Citing Ella Fitzgerald, Chet Baker and Billie Holiday as her influences, Laufey transports the listener to the golden age of jazz through her smooth vocals and dusty, nostalgic musical quality. Her popularity amongst the younger generation is unexpected, but simultaneously, makes complete sense.
While many artists use classical influences in their music, what makes Laufey (full name Laufey Lín Jónsdóttir) stand out is the way she blends both modern and classical styles. While she certainly holds Fitzgerald, Holiday and Baker in high regard, her modern influences include Adele and Taylor Swift. She does not confine her music to one era, to one genre, to one idolised figure.
Laufey had her reservations about mixing genres before beginning her career, having been raised on classical music (more on that later). It was only when she attended the Berklee College of Music, and was given the space to experiment and permission to “unlearn” some of the rigidity of her classical training that she realised it was okay to mix genres. She stated in an Elle interview that it all clicked: “Oh my god, it literally doesn’t matter.” Her cross-generational and multi-genre influences make her popularity among Gen-Z easy to understand; this is a generation of experimentation in music, of playing with conventions.
Again, many artists blend modern and older music via sampled, whether it be using a classical piano piece in hip-hop (see “I Can” by Nas), or pop artists singing over a disco track from the 80s (see “Hung Up” by Madonna, or Daft Punk’s “Cresendolls”). Laufey takes another direction, combining the often sardonic, self-reflexive disposition of Gen-Z/millennials with the classical instruments, soaring vocals and vintage-sounding production of jazz.
Her TikTok hit, From The Start, is a lament over unrequited love, a tale as old as time. However, the #relatable lyrics are juxtaposed with Laufey’s Fitzgerald-esque voice. Plus, the song features not only guitar and piano, but cello too, expanding beyond the range of instruments typically used in modern, mainstream music.
Having grown up with jazz enthusiasts, Laufey was encouraged to play multiple instruments as a child: “The second I could walk I was given a violin, and then I started playing piano when I was four, taking lessons and started playing cello. I took classical music very seriously as a kid.” Laufey’s musical know-how was nurtured from a young age; the importance of using classical instruments, and utilising the musical greats as influences is evidently ingrained into her.
However, despite being adept in multiple musical disciplines, Laufey was apparently very shy in regards to pursuing a career through her talents. Laufey has expressed her feelings about growing up biracial. The singer is half Icelandic, half Chinese, and was raised by Chinese women in Iceland. She has spoken about feeling very split between her two identities, stating that she is “quite white passing” in terms of her Asian identity and hadn’t been able to properly understand her Asian heritage until she moved to America where she became connected with a large Asian community. Further, when she was on Ísland Got Talent and The Voice Iceland at age 14, she felt rather self-conscious, and “on display” due to her highly individual voice. All in all, she felt that she was “a bit overly cautious when it came to living life” due to her lack of a stable identity, her natural shyness, and the fear of being a “party trick” singer.
But, with support from her family, who encouraged her to chase her dream, Laufey does not appear to be Laufey has found her niche, has a devoted following and two best-selling studio albums—and she’s only getting started.