Jófríður Ákadóttir (born 4 August 1994) is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer and multi-instrumentalist known as JFDR and is a founding member of the musical groups

Samaris ''Samaris'' is a genus of crested flounders native to the Indo-Pacific. Species There are currently five recognized species in this genus: * '' Samaris chesterfieldensis'' Mihara & Amaoka, 2004 * '' Samaris costae'' Quéro, Hensley & Mau ...

and Pascal Pinon. She has performed and recorded with numerous other musicians and has composed music for film and television. Her father is Icelandic composer and musician Áki Ásgeirsson. Her sisters Ásthildur, Marta, and Ólína are also musicians.

Career

Pascal Pinon

In 2009, when they were 14 years old Jófríður and her twin sister Ásthildur, along with Halla Kristjánsdóttir and Kristín Ylfa Hólmgrímsdóttir, formed the group. They released their self-produced first album, ''Pascal Pinon'', in 2009 which was then re-released by the Morr Music label in 2010. It was described by

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

as “a truly lovely record.” In 2013 the group, now a duo of Jófríður and Ásthildur, released their second album ''Twosomeness''. A third album, ''Sundur'', was released in 2016.

Samaris

Jófríður, Áslaug Rún Magnúsdóttir and Þórður Kári Steinþórsson formed Samaris in 2011. The group won the 2011 Icelandic

Músíktilraunir Músíktilraunir () is an annual music competition held in Reykjavík, Iceland. Winners * 1982 – Dron * 1983 – Dúkkulísurnar * 1984 – ''not held due to Strike action, teachers' strike'' * 1985 – Gipsy * 1986 – Greifarnir * 1987 – ...

competition and followed this success by self-releasing the EP ''Hljóma Þú'' EP, which then won a 2011 Icelandic

Kraumur Kraumur Music Fund is an independent Icelandic music fund and operation established by thAurora Charity Foundationin the beginning of 2008 ''"to strengthen Icelandic musical life, primarily by supporting young musicians in performing and presenting ...

award. A further self-released EP, ''Stofnar falla'', followed in 2012. The group signed with

One Little Independent Records One Little Independent Records (formerly One Little Indian Records) is an English independent record label. It was set up in 1985 by members of various anarcho-punk bands, and managed by former Flux of Pink Indians bassist Derek Birkett. In th ...

and their self-titled debut album was released in July 2013 to generally favourable reviews. The album combined their compositions with lyrics taken from 19th-century Icelandic poems. Samaris released ''Silkidrangar'' in 2014, ''Silkidrangar Sessions'' in 2015, and ''Black Lights'' in 2016.

Gangly

In 2014, Jófríður was involved with the conceptual project Gangly with Sindri Már Sigfússon (

Sin Fang Sin Fang is the stage name of Sindri Már Sigfússon, an Icelandic musician and member of the band Seabear. History Sindri founded the band Seabear in 2000, signing with the label Morr Music. Seabear was initially conceived as a solo project, bu ...

) and Úlfur Alexander Einarsson (of the Icelandic band Oyama) initially releasing the track ''Fuck With Someone Else''. Gangly went on to sign to UK labe
AMF Records
and made a series of video singles.

JFDR

In 2017 her solo album ''Brazil'' (produced in collaboration with

Shahzad Ismaily Shahzad Ismaily (born 20 June 1972 in Pennsylvania) is an American multi-instrumentalist, known mainly as a bass guitar player, and record producer. He is a member of Marc Ribot's trio Ceramic Dog since its formation in 2006. He also plays with S ...

) was released. In 2018 she was named "Artist of the Year" by The

Reykjavík Grapevine Reykjavík is the capital and largest city in Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland on the southern shore of the Faxaflói Bay. With a latitude of 64°08′ N, the city is the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. Rey ...

tabloid magazine. ''JFDR - White Sun Live. Part I : Strings'', an EP of her songs reworked with a string section, was released in 2018. ''Gravity'', a special EP, was released during the 2018 Iceland Airwaves in the form of a bar of chocolate with a download code. In 2020, Jófríður, along with her four sisters, gave a video concert in Reykjavík to an empty hall (due to the Covid-19 pandemic) for the album release of ''New Dreams''. The pandemic also caused the cancellation of her spring and fall 2020 tours. ''New Dreams'' won the (Reykjavík) Grapevine Music Awards 2021 album of the year. She won the 2024 Icelandic music award in the category Pop, Rock, Hip Hop, and Electronic for her album ''Museum''. JFDR on stage 2022

Collaborations

Jófríður has collaborated with

Low Roar Low Roar was an Iceland-based post-rock/electronica project founded by American immigrant Ryan Karazija. Originally a solo act, the band later added musicians Leifur Björnsson and Logi Guðmundsson. After releasing five albums spanning over a ...

Lapalux Stuart Howard, better known by his stage name Lapalux (short for "Lap of Luxury") or LPLX, is an English record producer from Essex. He is known for his experimental use of texture and wonky, off-kilter beats. He has released four LPs to date an ...

Daníel Bjarnason Daníel Bjarnason (born 26 February 1979) is an Icelandic composer and conductor. He has garnered widespread acclaim for his debut album, ''Processions'' (2010), with TimeOut NY writing he "create(s) a sound that comes eerily close to defining ...

Damien Rice Damien George Rice (born 7 December 1973) is an Irish musician, singer and songwriter. He began his career as a member of the 1990s rock group Juniper (band), Juniper, who were signed to Polygram Records in 1997. The band enjoyed moderate succe ...

, Aaron Roche, Nini Julia Bang, Sin Fang, Birnir, Max Sokolinski, Kreld, Aves, Örvar Smárason, Strange Boy, and Penelope Trappes. In December 2020 she performed with

Ólafur Arnalds Ólafur Arnalds (; born 3 November 1986) is an Icelandic multi-instrumentalist and producer from Mosfellsbær, Iceland. He mixes strings and piano with loops and beats, a sound ranging from ambient/electronic to atmospheric pop. He is also th ...

in ''A Sunrise Session'' video.

Soundtrack compositions

Jófríður has composed music for film and television including

Dakota Fanning Hannah Dakota Fanning (born February 23, 1994) is an American actress. Fanning is known for her roles in blockbuster films and independent features, both as a child actor and as an adult. Her accolades include nominations for a Golden Globe A ...

's short ''Hello Apartment'', Silja Hauksdóttir's feature film ''

Agnes Joy ''Agnes Joy'' is a 2019 Icelandic drama film directed by Silja Hauksdóttir. It was selected as the Icelandic entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 93rd Academy Awards, but it was not nominated. Plot Rannveig finds herself grapp ...

'', and Marteinn Thorsson’s feature film ''Backyard Village''. She has also composed the music for the television series ''Systrabönd'' (Sisterhood). She performed music for the video game ''

Death Stranding ''Death Stranding'' is a 2019 action-adventure game developed by Kojima Productions and originally published by Sony Interactive Entertainment. It is the first game from director Hideo Kojima and Kojima Productions after their split from Konam ...

'' (2019). In 2022 she wrote the music for the TV series ''Randalín og Mundi: Dagar í desember'' (24 episodes). In 2023 she contributed music to the Icelandic TV series ''Stormur'' and in 2024 to the Icelandic true-crime documentary series ''Íslensk Sakamál''. In 2025 Jófriður and Áslaug Magnúsdóttir presented the film ''A story from St. John’s Eve.''

Influences

Jófríður has stated that she has been influenced by

Joni Mitchell Roberta Joan Mitchell (née Anderson; born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian and American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and painter. As one of the most influential singer-songwriters to emerge from the 1960s folk music circuit, Mitch ...

, Arthur Russell,

Steve Reich Stephen Michael Reich ( ; born October 3, 1936) is an American composer best known as a pioneer of minimal music in the mid to late 1960s. Reich's work is marked by its use of repetitive figures, slow harmonic rhythm, and canons. Reich descr ...

Enya Eithne Pádraigín Ní Bhraonáin (born 17 May 1961; anglicised as Enya Patricia Brennan) known mononymously as Enya, is an Irish singer and composer. With an estimated equivalent of over 80 million albums sold worldwide, Enya is the best-selli ...

Björk Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct voice, three-octave vocal range, and eccentric public per ...

, and

Yoko Ono Yoko Ono (, usually spelled in katakana as ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking. Ono grew up in Tokyo and moved to New York ...

Discography

JFDR

Studio albums * ''Brazil'' (2017), (White Sun Recordings/Kobalt) * ''New Dreams'' (2020) (Krúnk) * ''Museum'' (2023) (Houndstooth) Extended plays * ''JFDR - White Sun Live. Part I : Strings'' (2018) (

Morr Music Morr Music is an independent record label based in Berlin, Germany, founded in 1999 by Thomas Morr. Most artists on the label fall into the categories of intelligent dance music, electronica and dreampop, but all reflect Thomas Morr's personal ta ...

) * ''Gravity'' (2018) (Omnom) * ''Dream On'' (2020) (Krúnk)

Samaris

Studio albums * ''Samaris'' (2013) (

One Little Indian Records One Little Independent Records (formerly One Little Indian Records) is an English independent record label. It was set up in 1985 by members of various anarcho-punk bands, and managed by former Flux of Pink Indians bassist Derek Birkett. In t ...

) * ''Silkidrangar'' (2014) (One Little Indian Records) * ''Silkidrangar Sessions'' (2015) (One Little Indian Records) * ''Black Lights'' (2016) (One Little Indian Records) Extended plays * ''Hljóma Þú'' (2011) (self-released) * ''Stofnar falla'' (2012) (self-released)

Pascal Pinon

Albums * ''Pascal Pinon'' (2009) (self-released) * ''Pascal Pinon'' (2010) (Morr Music) * ''Twosomeness'' (2013) (Morr Music) * ''Sundur'' (2016) (Morr Music) Extended plays * ''Pascal Pinon'' EP (2009) (self-released) * ''I wrote a song'' EP (2010) (A Number of Small Things) * ''Party Wolves'' EP (2012) (Morr Music)

References

{{authority control 1994 births Jófrídur Ákadóttir Jófrídur Ákadóttir Jófrídur Ákadóttir Jófrídur Ákadóttir Icelandic women folk singers Living people Jófrídur Ákadóttir Jófrídur Ákadóttir Jófrídur Ákadóttir Twin musicians