Laufey, an Up and Coming Artist - Felix

 What Musician, Actor or Author Should Be a Superstar, but Hasn’t Quite Made It Yet?

 

Laufey (pronounced lay-vay), the Icelandic singer/songwriter, is far from superstardom, but deserves to be just that. Born and raised in Iceland, she always knew of her dream to become a famous musician, but was never largely known until the COVID-19 pandemic (Gross). Ever since then, she has gradually gained more popularity and is now selling out stadiums in her current tour based on her most recent studio album A Matter of Time (Gross). I personally don’t consider this as her being a superstar because at that level of popularity I imagine that nearly everyone (at least in American culture) would recognize her name. On several occasions, I have casually mentioned her name, and proceeded to be met with blank stares. While this is not the only factor that defines someone's fame I believe it provides a good idea on how well known they are generally.

In my opinion the most deserving artists to be popular should, in some way, make an impact on the music industry. Laufey has done something that appeals to pop genre listeners but also includes her own take on it. Laufey has used both her classical and jazz music knowledge and added pop influences to make a combined sound of the three genres mentioned. She has made a significant mark upon the music industry and continues to do so, having recently won her second Grammy for best traditional pop album (Gross). As a songwriter, she has written most of her songs with themes of love, as is the norm for both the jazz and pop genres, with lyrics ranging from “One day, I will stop falling in love with you / Some day, someone will like me like I like you” (lines 7-8) to “I've had enough / Of waiting 'til you lie and cheat / Just like you did to the actress before me” (lines 8-10). With just these lyrical examples alone, it is clear that she is a versatile songwriter. While some may be under the impression that songs about love are flat or universally one way, I think Laufey expertly demonstrates the many facets of love in her lyricism.

Laufey’s aforementioned five-act stadium tour continues to sell out shows (Fell). She candidly remarks in an NPR interview, “Every night I go out on stage and I'm shocked that this many people even know who I am” (Gross). Despite this success, I would still not consider her a superstar, as she is still fairly new to the spotlight, as suggested by that previous quote. As earlier stated, she gained traction during the pandemic due to her jazz covers on social media receiving large amounts of attention (Gross). This internet success led her to later release her first two studio albums Everything I Know About Love and Bewitched. The latter which, according to Gross, “topped Billboard's jazz and traditional jazz charts,” (Gross). From jazz covers during the pandemic to sold out stadiums, Laufey continues to grow in success and I believe that she is well on her way to becoming a superstar.

What makes someone deserving of being a superstar and what makes a superstar? I’ve tried to answer those very questions in this blog post as best I can by explaining why Laufey deserves to be of that status. While there are several people I think should be more famous than they already are, Laufey is the only one who I truly think is capable of reaching that status in such a competitive and demanding industry. In a recent interview with NPR, Laufey says “I think I gained a bit of a reputation as this very soft artist with my last projects, and though I am that, I am so much more than that as well” (Gross). This excerpt shows her honesty and represents how she’s trying to break away from this misconception about her capabilities as an artist, showing how promising her career is, especially if she plans to continue to go out of her comfort zone. In conclusion, I truly believe that Laufey should and will be a superstar one day.



Here is a link to a small performance she did for NPR in 2023 : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avjI3_GIZBw

Works Cited 

Fell, Nicole. "Laufey Charms L.A. Crowd With Her Whimsical and Theatrical A Matter of Time Tour." The Hollywood Reporter, 1 Oct. 2025, https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/music/music-news/laufey-la-matter-of-time-tour-1236387430/. Accessed 7 Feb. 2026.   

Gross, Terry. "Laufey was an 'odd fish' in native Iceland. Now she's a jazz-pop star." NPR, 8 Oct. 2025, https://www.npr.org/2025/10/08/nx-s1-5561773/laufey-fresh-air. Accessed 7 Feb. 2026.  

Laufey. “Let You Break My Heart Again.” Let You Break My Heart Again, AWAL, 2021. Genius, https://genius.com/Laufey-and-philharmonia-orchestra-let-you-break-my-heart-again-lyrics. Accessed 5 Feb. 2026.

Laufey. “Tough Luck.” A Matter of Time, AWAL, 2025. Genius, https://genius.com/Laufey-tough-luck-lyrics. Accessed 5 Feb. 2026. 

Mago, Nicole. Laufey performing on the A Matter of Time Tour. Vogue, https://www.vogue.com/article/laufey-bode-a-matter-of-time-tour-costumes. Accessed 5 Feb,  2026.  

Warren, Gemma. Album cover of Bewitched: The Goddess Edition. Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bewitched_(Laufey_album). Accessed 5 Feb,  2026.