Who is Laufey? Inside the TikTok sensation’s career bringing classical jazz mainstream-Rebecca Sayce-Entertainment – Metro

Laufey is fast becoming one of the biggest pop stars on the planet (Picture: Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)

You may not have heard of The Graham Norton Show’s musical guest tonight, but she’s fast becoming one of pop’s most exciting names.

Laufey joins the titular host on the famous couch alongside Hollywood icons Timothee Chalamet, Colman Domingo, and Andrew Garfield.

Gavin and Stacey creatorsRuth Jones and James Corden will also speak with Graham about their upcoming Christmas special which marks the final ever episode of the hit sitcom.

Icelandic popstar Laufey will provide the night’s live entertainment – but who exactly is the singer who is among the many artists rising to fame through TikTok?

Here, we take a look at Laufey’s incredible career from her teenage TV appearances to a Grammy Award win and bringing jazz music to mainstream audiences.

Who is Laufey?

Laufey Lín Bing Jónsdóttir – who performs mononymously as Laufey – is a jazz-inspired pop artist hailing from Iceland.

Laufey comes from a family of musicians (Picture: Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images)

The multi-instrumentalist began her career at 15 (Picture: PA Wire)

Born in Reykjavik, her father is Icelandic while her mother, who is a classical violinist, is from Guangzhou, China.

Laufey’s mother is not the only musician in their family – her maternal grandmother, Lin Yaoji, taught violin at the Central Conservatory of Music in China, and Laufey has a twin sister, Júnía Lín, who is also a violinist.

At 15, Laufey’s career began when she performed as a cello soloist with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra.

In 2014, she was a contestant on the Icelandic version of Britain’s Got Talent – Ísland Got Talent – where the teenager got all the way to the finals.

A year later, Laufey became the youngest competitor on The Voice Iceland, where she placed in the semi-finals.

The 2020s saw Laufey create several viral TikTok videos that catapulted her music to public attention.

She appeared on numerous Icelandic TV shows (Picture: PA Wire)

Her first single was released in 2020 and topped the Icelandic charts (Picture: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic)

Laufey released her debut single, Street by Street, in 2020 which reached number one on Icelandic Radio.

The song featured on her debut EP, Typical of Me, which was released shortly after and included songs she wrote while attending the Berklee College of Music in Boston.

American Songwriter included the EP in its list of 2021’s best albums, and the release was praised by global superstar Billie Eilish.

Laufey went on to release her debut album, Everything I Know About Love, in 2022 which charted in the US as well as in Iceland.

She followed this with the 2023 release Bewitched, featuring hit single From the Start, which won her a Grammy Award for best traditional pop vocal album.

At the star-studded awards ceremony, she performed with Billy Joel for his hit song Turn the Lights Back On.

She won a Grammy Award in 2023 for her second album (Picture: PA Wire)

In the same year, she signed a global publishing deal with Warner Chappell Music.

Laufey has collaborated with the likes of the London Philharmonic Orchestra on her song Let You Break My Heart Again, and singer Dodie on single Love To Keep Me Warm.

In an interview with Time Out, the singer spoke about her goal to bring classical music to the masses.

‘My fans come [to my shows], and often it’s their first time seeing a live orchestra play – my hope is maybe they’ll come back next week and listen to a Mahler symphony or something,’ she said.

‘I like to keep the message that music is just music. Back in the day, classical music was just pop. It can just be something that follows you through the day, or lifts your spirits, or makes you feel something. And there really is nothing more powerful than seeing a live orchestra.’

The Graham Norton Show airs tonight at 10.40pm on BBC One

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