“As a musician, my goal is to bring jazz and classical music to my generation through a more accessible road,” declares the composer, singer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Laufey. The LA based, Icelandic-Chinese artist’s trailblazing approach paid off, as she is now the top streaming jazz artist in the world and has sold out all of her headline tours around the world within minutes; including nights with the LA Philharmonic, DC’s National Symphony Orchestra, Iceland Symphony Orchestra, China Philharmonic Orchestra and more. 

The Los Angeles-based Laufey (pronounced lāy-vāy) continued her story this year by writing and recording her second album, Bewitched. Inspired by jazz greats and classical masters while possessing a point of view that could only be conveyed by a 21st-century twentysomething, Bewitched represents an expansion of Laufey’s sonic palette. Tracks like the breezy bossa nova cut “From the Start” and the smoldering string-assisted ballad “Promise” have classic songcraft and intricate arrangements that make them feel instantly timeless, while Laufey’s conversational lyrics give her music a relatability to the next generation of jazz and classical aficionados. Bewitched has gone on to break the record as the biggest debut for a jazz album on Spotify in history and earned a 2024 GRAMMY nomination for “Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album.”  

Laufey’s self-assured musicianship and deeply felt lyrics take the idea of “classic” music, whether it’s slotted as classical or jazz—or even chart-topping pop—and humanize it, creating a deep-seated connection.