Jazz strives to reach young ones

It’s often said that jazz no longer appeals to young people. But this musical genre, which originated in the ’20s, is determined to win over younger listeners and prove it is more alive than ever.

For many, jazz is synonymous with Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, John Coltrane and thousands of other artists from back in the day. But the genre is not limited to covers and tributes. Today’s musicians, like Laufey, are striving to give it a modern twist.

This 24-year-old Chinese-Icelandic singer-songwriter is one of music’s break-out acts of 2023.

Her debut album, Everything I Know About Love, was a surprising success when it was released in 2022, becoming the most listened-to jazz album on Spotify that year.

However, big-time success came with her second album, Bewitched. On its release on 8 September last year, this album featured in second place on Spotify’s weekly chart of the most streamed new albums on the platform, behind Olivia Rodrigo’s GUTS.

It also featured in various Billboard music charts, including the one dedicated to jazz records.

But the success of Bewitched on Spotify is all the more remarkable given that jazz is struggling to make its mark on music streaming platforms. It accounted for just 0.8% of total listening volume in the US market in 2022, according to Bloomberg, citing figures from Luminate.

A number of factors explain this phenomenon, including the consumption habits of jazz fans. They tend to be older than pop or rap fans and make less use of streaming platformsc. Jazz musicians have also been reluctant to put their repertoires on Spotify, Apple Music and the like, because of these services’ remuneration systems, which only benefit a tiny minority. –