LaGaylia Frazier is an American-born Swedish singer who specializes in R&B and jazz.
Early life and work
LaGaylia Frazier was born in Miami, Florida. She grew up in Miami Shores in a single parent household headed by her mother as her parents had separated when Frazier was two years old. As a child she played classical piano for twelve years. She began singing while a student at the University of Miami where she majored in voice and musical theatre. After leaving the University of Miami without a degree, she performed with Top 40 bands, eventually joining singer Rosco Martinez and pianist Paquito Hechavarriais in a Latin dance band named Uno Mundo but whose recording debut was as Bandera in 1989. Bandera enjoyed radio support in Florida but were otherwise overlooked despite a European promotional tour by Frazier and her bandmates. After a sabbatical in Britain, Frazier returned to Florida in 1990 and was hired to sing with the house band at the Fort Lauderdale club Coconuts. After she was noticed by a manager, Eliot Weisman, she began singing in Atlantic City and Las Vegas. Frazier sang backup on the song "I Can't Wait Another Minute" by Hi-Five and on the title song from the albumHold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me by Gloria Estefan. In 1994, with Emilio Estefan producing, she recorded the Jon Secada song "Shower Me With Your Love" for the soundtrack to the film The Specialist.
Career in Sweden
While performing at Coconuts in 1999 Frazier was discovered by Marie Schröder, who was visiting the U.S. and became her manager. Frazier went on tour in Scandinavia with the 2000 edition of Rhapsody in Rock by Robert Wells. She moved to Sweden in 2001 and became a citizen in 2008. She participated in Rhapsody of Rock tours in 2001, 2002, 2007 and 2011 editions. Frazier made two bids to represent Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest: at Melodifestivalen 2004 with "It's in the Stars" and at Melodifestivalen 2005 with "Nothing at All". Both were released by the Lionheart Records M&L label. In 2005 Frazier signed a three-single deal with Lionheart but subsequent to "Nothing at All", which reached No. 38 on the Swedish chart, she had only one single release, "Head in the Clouds" in April 2006. Her album Uncovered was released in 2007 by her label TBG. She wrote nine of the album's ten songs with its producer, Marcus Dernulf. In 2008 Frazier participated in the Romanian national pre-selection round for Eurovision known as Selecția Națională, performing the song "Dr Frankenstein". She won the Baltic Festival in Karlshamn with her song "Over and Over Again" in July 2008. In 2003 Frazier performed as Anita in the Malmö Opera and Music Theatre's production of West Side Story. In 2004 she appeared at the Stockholm Jazz Festival. Since 2010 she has collaborated with pianist Jan Lundgren and his trio. At a concert with Lundgren's trio at the Jazz Museum in Strömsholm, she received the Anita O'Day Award in August 2010. Her second album, Until It's Time, was a collaboration with Lundgren. Beginning in 2010, she toured in Sweden in an R&B revue entitled the Blues Mothers with Sahlene. She was a choirmaster in Season #2 of Körslaget. She is one of the jury in Talang 2017 which is broadcast on TV4. She participates as a celebrity dancer in Let's Dance 2019, which is broadcast on TV4.
