Iceland Airwaves 2025 blokkenschema dag 3 - Saturday 8 November 2025

Bríet is an award-winning Icelandic singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist celebrated for her distinct and evocative sound. Her music seamlessly blends introspective singer-songwriter vibes with vibrant, energetic pop, showcasing her versatility across genres. Beyond her musical prowess, Bríet is a visionary artist who meticulously crafts every aspect of her work. She directs her own music videos, designs her costumes, and serves as the creative force behind the art direction of her projects, ensuring that her artistic vision is fully realized in every detail.
Bríet’s talents extend beyond music; she is also an accomplished actress, bringing the same depth and passion to her performances on screen as she does on stage. In her free time, she paints, adding yet another dimension to her creative repertoire. Her 2021 album Kveðja, Bríet was a critical and commercial triumph, earning her the prestigious Album of the Year award at the Icelandic Music Awards, where she also won Singer of the Year and Lyricist of the Year.
Bríet’s music resonates deeply with audiences in Iceland and beyond, drawing attention from international listeners who are captivated by her unique voice and storytelling. Having started her journey as a teenager, Bríet has spent years honing her craft, using her music as a medium to explore and express complex emotions. Now, as she sets her sights on the global stage, Bríet is poised to make an indelible mark on the international music scene, bringing her extraordinary talent and artistic vision to a broader audience.
“I like the color yellow. I love people that laugh and I adore flowers. I was 17 when I released my first EP and all of my music is about love in one way or another.”

Dirty Hit’s Japanese-Canadian artist Saya Gray creates multifaceted art-pop that defies convention. Her latest album, Saya, showcases an eclectic mix of sounds and textures that reflect her singular artistic vision.

Alternative punk-rap duo Joey Valence & Brae have taken their genre-breaking, era-bending sound from Penn State University dorms to global stages in just a few years. Their 2021 viral hit “Double Jump” launched their rise, leading to their debut album PUNK TACTICS (2023), featuring the gold-certified title track, “HOOLIGANG” which topped charts on TikTok and Reels, and “STARTAFIGHT,” which landed in a major Pepsi campaign. In 2024, they headlined two sold-out tours and released their sophomore LP NO HANDS, followed by a Deluxe Edition, with features from Danny Brown, Terror Reid, Z-Trip, and Ayesha Erotica. It debuted in Spotify’s Top 10 and amassed 90M+ streams, with “THE BADDEST (BADDER)” hitting #2 on the US Viral Chart. 2025 kicked off with JVB’s Australian debut at Laneway Festival alongside two sold-out headline shows, and they’re set to hit a series of US and European festivals this summer. Their third LP is currently in the works and expected to drop later this year.

Retro Stefson started making music together in 2006 when brothers Unnsteinn Manuel and Logi Pedro joined forces with their school friends Þórður Jörundsson, Gylfi Sigurðsson, Jon Ingvi Seljeseth, Haraldur Ari Stefánsson and Þorbjörg Roach Gunnarsdóttir. In 2011 Sveinbjörn Thorarensen aka Hermigervill joined the band, and an extensive tour followed. In 2016 Retro Stefson went into a hiatus as the members concentrated on other projects and carriers. They returned with a smash of a show at the N1 arena in late December 2024 and are now back at Iceland Airwaves after being absent for almost a decade.
Retro Stefson are a force of nature when it comes to live performances, and they have played some legendary shows all over the world and bunch of them have been at Iceland Airwaves. They are thrilled to be back at the festival they took their first steps as young kids in a band in 2006!

Daniel Moroshkin, better known under his artist pseudonym Daniil is a 23 year old half Icelandic/ half Russian artist who has been making waves in the Icelandic music scene for years.
He broke onto the Hip hop scene in 2018 and since his debut album “300” was released in 2019, Daniil has been cementing himself as one of the biggest and most exciting artists coming out of the Icelandic music scene.
Daniil wants to break boundaries and stereotypes of what is expected of the classic Icelandic Rapper. Collaborating with a variety of artists cross borders, keeping the audience on their toes.
This was highlighted with his release of “Ástin Mín” featuring prominent Danish artist USSEL on his sophomore album “600” which also featured his breakthrough hit “Ef Þeir Vilja Beef” that topped the Icelandic charts for multiple weeks.
Since his sophomore album release, Daniil has been headlining festivals throughout Iceland and working on his third studio album set to release in early 2025 as well as releasing singles with prominent artists such as Aron Can, Izleifur and more.
Now he embarks on his first real run of shows in Scandinavia and will bring his energetic live performance to Iceland Airwaves.

Milkywhale is not just a band—it’s an explosion of energy, synth-pop beats, and pure joy. Blending irresistible hooks with high-energy performance, Milkywhale turns every stage into a dance floor and every show into a party. Born from a unique collaboration between musician Árni Rúnar Hlöðversson (FM Belfast) and electrifying performer Melkorka Sigríður Magnúsdóttir, the project fuses catchy melodies with playful choreography and an anything-goes attitude. Whether they’re making you dance, laugh, or wonder what on earth just happened, Milkywhale is an experience best witnessed live.

Gugusar produces and writes all her songs on her own. She released her debut album ‘Listen To This Twice’ when she was only 15 years old. Gugusar’s second album was released in 2021. Both albums were nominated in the category Album of the year at the Icelandic Music Awards. She was nominated Singer of the year at the Icelandic Music Awards 2022. She was also nominated as Best Live Act of 2023 at the Reykjavík Grapevine Music Awards.
It is close to impossible to put gugusar’s music in one box or certain genre. Her music ranges from being soft and melodic, to heavy drum & bass. Gugusar is also not afraid to jump between writing in Icelandic and English, and sometimes she just hums and sings in no language. Her music is experimental and there is no telling what is around the corner when you listen to her music.
Gugusar began performing at a very young age as a figure skater. There, she fell in love with performing and being on stage, in front of crowds. Her love for performing on ice was transcended by performing her own music on stage. It is obvious in her musical performances that she was once a figure skater when she dances on stage. Gugusar sometimes choreographs dance routines and uses them to elevate her performance.
She’ll be releasing a new album in 2025, starting with a single release at the end of March.

Getdown Services is Josh Law and Ben Sadler. They met at school in Minehead, Somerset and make music together at home in Bristol. Their highly lauded debut album Crisps was released in November 2023 via Breakfast Records presenting eclectic, danceable grooves and astute, hilarious put-downs of modern Britain.
They are steadily carving out a name for themselves and building momentum over the past 18 months, with balls-to-the-wall live performances and prestigious shows with Pip Blom, Fat Dog, The Bug Club, Donny Benet, and Antony Szmierek – among many others.
The band completed their biggest ever sold out headline UK tour in autumn 2024 after their vastly praised new EP release “Your Medal’s In The Post”, out on November 14th 2024, followed closely by their first ever sold out EU tour in January 2025.
Off the back of extensive BBC 6Music support from the likes of Craig Charles, Huw Stephens, and Cerys Matthews, and armed with an arsenal of red-hot hits, Getdown Services look set to gobble the world up, one crumb at a time

COLT is the meeting of two sensibilities that spark something special. At the crossroads of electro-pop and French chanson, the Belgian duo delivers intense, intimate and incandescent music. After two EPs and powerful singles such as Insomnies and Reboot, they unveil Saveur Cœur Abîmé, a debut album that is a blaze of emotions.

Jeshi doesn’t run away from fire; he runs with it. The East London artist is on a quest to feel alive in every sense. To him, feeling alive means being present in each experience, no matter how challenging. For Jeshi – who has spent the last few years establishing himself as one of the most exciting voices of his generation – this is what life and art are all about. Chaos, then, is not something to shy away from, but where great ideas are born.
You can feel this ethos in practice throughout Jeshi’s increasingly vital output. His music is audacious and unflinching, stuffed with punkish energy and charisma as the 29-year-old remoulds the outermost contours of UK rap. This applies to early releases such as 2017’s The World’s Spinning Too Fast EP and 2020’s swaggering BAD TASTE. It also extends to his soul-baring 2022 debut album Universal Credit – an “era-defining” (as per The Guardian) portrayal of London life, social malaise, everyday struggles and youthful abandon that highlights Jeshi’s evocative storytelling.

RAKEL is an Icelandic artist working in song, memory, and atmosphere. Her music folds together voice, field recording, and emotion into layered compositions that feel intimate and expansive. She has become a quietly singular presence in the Icelandic music landscape, performing with artists like Nanna (Of Monsters and Men), Axel Flóvent, and Kaktus Einarsson. Her debut album – a place to be (Oct 17) – is part diary, part landscape. Co-created with Danish producer and longtime collaborator Sara Flindt, the album is shaped by the acoustics of real places, her family’s farm in Hrútafjörður, Sara’s Copenhagen dorm room, a friend’s studio in Aarhus, woven into songs that resist structure and resolution. Birds, clocks, breath, soft synths, the creak of a floorboard, nothing is too small to become part of the composition. RAKEL’s work doesn’t try to explain itself. It invites you into a space where thought becomes sound, memory becomes movement, and music becomes a place to be, for now.

Hania Derej – composer, pianist, conductor. She is a student at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam (jazz composition and arrangement) and the Music Academy in Cracow (symphonic conducting). She is the author of more than 130 compositions, some of which have been recorded on nine CDs, including at the recording studio of the Polish Radio in Katowice. Hania creates music in various styles, including jazz, illustrative, chamber, and electronic music. Her music stimulates the imagination, is characterized by melodiousness, and carries an emotional message.
Hania is the recipient of many awards, including the Double Grand Prix of the Ladies’ Jazz Festival 2025 in Gdynia (from the jury and the audience), the Main Prize in the “Sanki” 2025 poll by Gazeta Wyborcza (for the new hope of the Polish music scene), the Main Prize of the first “Jazz Talents” competition within the 21st edition of Jazz Spring Zakopane 2025, the Triton Award for the greatest artistic personality of the 54th FAMA Festival 2024 in Świnoujście (Poland), a special award for compositions and arrangements at the Junior Jazz Festival 2023 in Wadowice (Poland), and the “Young Composer 2023” award funded by the Polish Composers’ Union in Warsaw during the International Piano Forum in Sanok (Poland).
Within this Piano Forum, Hania also received distinctions for piano performance, including concerts with the National Polish Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra and the Lviv Chamber Orchestra “Akademia.” As a conductor, Hania has led concerts with the National Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra (Poland), Elbląg Chamber Orchestra (Poland), Lviv Chamber Orchestra “Akademia” (Ukraine), and the Moravian Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra (Czech Republic), among others.
Hania also participates in international music projects and conferences in Europe, such as the European FAMES Orchestra (Macedonia), The Playground Residence (Germany, Netherlands), Sync Camp (Poland), International Jazz Platform (Netherlands, Norway, Poland), Music Export Academy (Poland), Global Conservatory and Eastern European Music Export Academy (Ukraine), the Iceland Airwaves Networking Mission, ESNS Showcase Festival & Conference (Netherlands), and Jazzahead 2025 (Germany).
In the JAZZTOP 2024 critics’ survey of the international magazine JAZZFORUM, Hania Derej won first place in the “New Hope” category and fifth place in the “New Hope – Ensemble” category as the Hania Derej Quintet. In April 2025, she was awarded a distinction in the nationwide “Young Promoter of Poland” contest, under the Honorary Patronage of the Wife of the President of the Republic of Poland, recognizing young Poles whose activities contribute to the popularization of knowledge about Poland and building a positive image of the country abroad. In May 2025, Hania received the award for the new hope of the Polish music scene.

JFDR is Jófríður Ákadóttir, a musician and film score composer from Iceland.

Katie Gregson-MacLeod’s unique blend of deeply personal lyricism and folk-influenced sound have earned her a dedicated global audience. Growing up in the Scottish Highlands, the 23 year old was immersed in music from an early age, singing alongside her pianist mother and losing herself in musicals with her parents – a love of which is rooted in her fascination with storytelling. Her infatuation with language and creative writing was instilled as a child, observing her father writing novels everyday before and after work, and that same thread runs through the folk music she came to discover in her late teens, alongside influences of Motown and Soul that came from inheriting her late grandfather’s record collection. Inspired by classic
singer-songwriters like Joni Mitchell, Leonard Cohen, and Elliott Smith, Katie’s journey began busking in Inverness to playing local pub gigs in the city and self-releasing a low-fi EP ‘Games I Play’ aged 18. Fast forward to 2022 and a viral breakout on TikTok with single “complex”, which led to international recognition, a major label deal, an Ivor Novello nomination and a whirlwind of festival performances and headline tours. After parting ways with her major label home in early 2024, Katie embraced a new chapter of creative independence, signing with Matt Maltese’s Last Recordings on Earth and crafting a raw, intimate EP that reflects the balance between love and artistic uncertainty. Firmly rooted in her lifelong passion for storytelling, Katie’s work continues to explore themes of nostalgia, power dynamics, and self-reflection, all underscored by her signature poeticism and vulnerability.

Elín Hall is an award-winning Icelandic songwriter, musician, and actress, emerging as one of the most compelling new voices in contemporary music. With haunting vocals, poetic lyricism, and atmospheric soundscapes, her music blends alt-pop with elements of folk and electronica, creating an intimate yet cinematic experience.
Her 2023 Icelandic album heyrist í mér? (can you hear me?) produced three No. 1 singles in Iceland, won Album of the Year at the Reykjavík Grapevine Music Awards, and received multiple nominations at the Icelandic Music Awards. The album’s success established Hall as a standout artist in Iceland’s thriving music scene.
Hall is making her first international steps with the release of “Heaven to a Heathen” co-written with and produced by Grammy-winning Martin Terefe (YUNGBLUD, Shawn Mendes, KT Tunstall). The single was written and recorded at Eastcote Studios in London. Her commitments in 2025 include an appearance at Berlinale Festival and SXSW showcase in Austin. She is also Iceland’s first representative at BBC Radio 1’s Europe’s Biggest Gig performance.
Beyond music, Hall is also making waves in film. She won Best Actress at the 2024 Chicago International Film Festival for her role in When the Light Breaks, which premiered at Cannes’ Un Certain Regard. Named one of European Film Promotion’s 2025 Shooting Stars, she continues to build a reputation as a multi-faceted artist.
With a growing international following and a reputation for captivating live performances, Elín Hall is an artist on the rise—one whose evocative sound and compelling artistry make her a talent to watch.

Reykjavík-based musician Ari Árelíus makes music that lives somewhere between worlds—drawing from psychedelic rock, jazz, desert blues, and Icelandic folk, all filtered through his background as a guitarist and producer. His sound has been described as “Icelandic desert music” and “mountain funk”—a playful way to name the strange and soulful grooves that emerge when traditional forms meet surreal textures.
His 2022 debut album Hiatus Terræ brought together everything from throat singing and wooden flutes to distorted guitar and fifth-based voicings rooted in Icelandic harmony. The result was a dreamlike and rhythmically rich landscape that resonated with listeners looking for something both earthy and otherworldly.
Now, Ari is preparing to release Hulin Hönd—his most introspective work to date. Still grounded in the raw, improvisational spirit of his earlier music, this new project dives deeper into personal themes, exploring uncertainty, hidden forces, and the quiet gestures that shape our lives.
At Iceland Airwaves 2025, Ari Árelíus offers a glimpse into this evolving sonic world—an honest and imaginative set that blends grooves, textures, and storytelling in unexpected ways.

Faroese art rapper Marius DC is an original. Over the past seven years, he’s pushed the boundaries of hip-hop in his home country, becoming a key voice in its growing scene. Over the course of three EPs and a steady stream of singles, the young MC has effortlessly walked the line between classic hip-hop braggadocio and unflinchingly honest intimacy. His 2023 performance in Iceland garnered rave reviews and after two very formative years, DC is coming back to Reykjavík, older, wiser, and more seasoned.

Lea is a Faroese singer-songwriter known for her ability to captivate listeners with her warm vocals and poetic Faroese lyrics.
With her album Seinferð, produced by Teitur, Lea Kampmann invites you into a musical space that feels like sitting inside an acoustic guitar.
Released in September 2024, Seinferð has received critical acclaim and was nominated for Album of the Year at the Faroese Music Awards 2025, with Lea also being nominated for Lyricist of the Year at the same awards.
Lea’s music is deeply connected to her Faroese roots, and Seinferð is Lea’s protest against the forever growing fast pace of modern life. The album’s title, meaning “slow motion” in Faroese, is a reminder to herself, that she doesn’t have to run as fast as others when it doesn’t feel right to herself.
Lea’s performances are known for creating an intimate atmosphere, inviting the audience into a space of calm and reflection. Joining her on stage are Sara Flindt (keys), Aske Frydenlund-Vad (acoustic guitar), and Lukas Loeb (double bass and saxophone). This live constellation creates concerts that shift between whispering sequences and explosive moments, communal singing, tapping guitar solos, saxophone and violin passages — a concert experience that celebrates sensitivity, community, and music.

In a world full of genres and subgenres, who are you if none of them defines you? Treading a path somewhere between the clincalness of pop and the vastness of dance music, digital ísland just want to party.
From producing chart topping German rap, being the backbone of Icelandic rap for the last decade and fronting an avant-garde electronica band respectively, digital ísland’s members come from three very different walks of the music industry – Rap and dance music being the common denominator. Frontwoman Tatjana (ex.girls) delivers soft, almost existentialistic vocals over hard hitting dance beats, spearheaded by producers Mistersir and Young Nazareth.
It almost seems backwards to make dance music in a country without a single club, but coming from an evergrowing and innovative yet homeless Reykjavík dance scene, digital ísland are hungrier than ever to light up your dancefloor.

The Danish-Icelandic duo slóra, with vocalist/keyboardist Sara Flindt and drummer/percussionist Svanhildur Lóa, explores the space between improvisation and composition. Their music draws on elements of songwriting while embracing the freedom of the avant-garde, blending synths, piano, drums and pedal manipulation. By exploring and challenging hierarchy in music and language, slóra invites new ways of listening. At the core is Sara’s work with voice and language—embracing the ever-shifting, the unpredictable, and the imperfect, always in dialogue with the present.
Their upcoming debut album, recorded with engineer Lukas Loeb, reflects this process of risk and openness. One piece, tearstobealone, exists in 14 versions recorded over four days, embodying slóra’s commitment to imperfection and to letting the moment shape the work.

Álfgrímur is a Reykjavík-based singer and performance artist whose music blends Icelandic pop with theatrical depth. Known for his striking vocals and heartfelt lyricism, he creates songs that balance vulnerability with power, intimacy with spectacle. Formerly performing under the name BLOSSI, Álfgrímur has developed a unique voice in the Icelandic music scene, drawing from personal stories, queer identity, and a fascination with contrasts between light and dark, hype and heartbreak, playfulness and sincerity. His live shows fuse music and performance art, with a presence that is both magnetic and emotionally raw. At Iceland Airwaves, Álfgrímur brings audiences into his world of poetic pop songs that shimmer with melancholy and joy, delivered with fearless honesty

Geðbrigði is a raw experimental heavy punk band that takes inspiration from experiences, people, places and feelings. The band formed in may of 2023, and have since played at many local festivals such as; Andkristni, Lilló Hardcore Fest, Norðanpaunk, Aldrei fór ég suður!, and MBS. The band won first place in Músíktilraunir 2025, and also got an award for Best Icelandic Lyrics, and Geðbrigði’s vocalist (Þórhildur Helga Pálsdóttir) won Vocalist of Músíktilraunir. Arnar Eggert Thoroddsen, doctor in music, said this about Geðbrigði’s performance in Músíktilraunir; “In the next 10 minutes something will happen that has never been seen on stage in Músíktilraunir”.
 

HASAR, meaning ”ACTION” in Icelandic, burst on the Reykjavík music scene like an action movie. With high intense live energy, where the sweat drips down from the walls. Loud fuzzy guitars, with banging drums and throbbing bass.
Forming in 2023 Hasar set out to bring an energy into the Reykjavík live music scene that the city seemed to by lacking a little bit.
HASAR gives no discounts on their live shows. With sweat dripping from the walls, the frontman hanging from the ceiling, while the band pummels you with a wall of sound that hit’s you like sledgehammer at 100 miles per hour in your face and you love every second of it.
Everything done with love and fun at the forefront, with a destruction like cadence.
With members from Icelandic bands such as; Hórmónar and Une Misère the band is a perfect mix of kick ass rock n’ roll with, punk, garage rock and hardcore influence’s, with catchy choruses to chant and tongue and cheek Icelandic lyrics that you can ponder after you have picked yourself up from the cartoon fight cloud of their live show.
Hasar takes no prisoners and doesn’t allow you to be a passive audience member, it’s all or nothing. If you’re not going to dance you can’t get out.
Hasar has been making it’s reputation as live band since it’s formation, being runners up as ”Best live act” in the Reykjavík Grapevine culture newspaper and several number one spots on Icelandic rock radio station FMX977
With their debut album coming out this year, everything’s coming up Hasar.
”In English, Hasar means “action” — a fitting band name for an act rooted in gritty rock ‘n’ roll, emphasising fast-paced music and electrifying live performances. Come to think of it, Hasar’s music would perfectly suit as the soundtrack to a compilation of skateboarding wipeouts.” -Reykjavík Grapevine
”Hasar continues its path of destruction throughout Reykjavík’s live venues. “We’re here to kill and entertain,” Örn finishes. “The motto these days is, ‘one, two, Hasar.’ Kick the door down.” -Reykjavík Grapevine