Singing alongside the Chicago Philharmonic, Laufey bewitched her audience with a stunning performance at the Bud Light stage on Friday, including a surprise guest feature with artist Raye.
Opening with “Dreamer,” Laufey enthusiastically greeted the crowd. “Welcome to the symphony,” she said before singing operatically with string instruments playing behind her.
As the beat picked up and the crowd got bigger, cheers erupted during peak moments of the song. She transitioned into singing other numbers, including “Falling Behind” and “Let You Break My Heart Again.”
Though most of the audience wasn’t singing word for word, they engaged with an excited Laufey through clapping, dancing and cheering throughout her performance.
Laufey, who has recently gained a much larger following than previous years, expressed such thankfulness and sincerity to the crowd for being there. Amid her vibrato to end the verses, she continued saying how shocked she was in her current experience.
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“I can’t believe how many there are of you here,” Laufey said.
Other numbers she performed included “Valentine” and “Lovesick.” Towards the middle of her performance, she hinted at loving to be able to watch other artists on set. She mentioned a specific one who loved jazz, and introduced artist Raye on stage.
Together, they covered the jazz song “It Could Happen to You” by Jimmy van Heusen. The audience welcomed this with high enthusiasm, and though Raye was only on stage for a that song, the cheers garnered at the end of their harmonies was high as ever.
Laufey, who grew up playing the cello and piano, shared her excitement to be on stage with festival members on the field. More than once she exclaimed her pleasant surprise at the amount of people in the audience.
She continued and sang her biggest hits, including “Bewitched” and “From the Start,” the last song in the set. Fans were more comfortable reciting the words to these loudly and proudly, singing along with her awe-inducing voice.
“It’s been one of my dreams since I started making music, to blend my songs together with orchestra,” Laufey said. “I never ever thought that I’d be able to do this, especially at a festival like Lolla. So thank you so much for welcoming me.”
