Laurika Rauch, OIB (born 1 November 1950 in Cape Town) is a South African singer who performs in both Afrikaans and English.

Her father was the public relations manager at Old Mutual until his retirement and her mother was a trained social worker, the editor of Die Huisvrou magazine and was also very involved in charity work, especially amongst the elderly.

She started playing the piano at the age of five, and sang alto in Oom Hannes Uys se Kindersangkring, a children’s choir from Pinelands, for 10 years.

Laurika matriculated at Jan van Riebeeck High School in Cape Town, studied drama at the University of Stellenbosch and obtained her degree in 1972.

In August 1996, Laurika performed with the Transvaal Philharmonic Orchestra (renamed NAPOP, now disbanded) in the Opera of the State Theatre in a program that consisted entirely of her repertoire.

The film titled Stuur groete aan Mannetjies Roux, which is based on the play, with Anna-Mart van der Merwe and Ian Roberts in lead roles, was released in 2013.

In 2019, she commemorated her 40 years in the music industry by releasing a limited edition (1000 copies) box set of 15 of her most loved albums, titled Laurika Rauch: 40 Jaar.

After the success of ‘Kinders van die wind’ and her ‘Debuut’-album, the singer and songwriter Anton Goosen asked her in October 1979 to accompany him on a tour.

In 1980 she asked her for an audition as she was looking for somebody to interpret the music of the Belgian songwriter Jacques Brel in a new production with Ann Hamblin and Ferdie Uphof.

Kushlick quickly decided that this "boeremeisie" (Afrikaner girl)– as she called Rauch – was the appropriate choice for her new production, ‘Encore!

The show was the first Afrikaans cabaret with Janice Honeyman as director and people such as Amanda Strydom, Rina Nienaber, Gerben Kamper and Bill Curry in the cast, it was a form of "civilised protest" against the government of the day.

In 1984, English-speaking husband, Christopher Torr, wrote a song in English about the bank robber André Stander, who had obtained almost legendary notoriety in South Africa.

When somebody gave Rauch a cassette recording of the music of the Udo Jürgens, she didn't listen to it at first, choosing to focus on original Afrikaans material, rather than translating foreign songs.

Rauch has put quite a few poems to music and recorded them, such as Nalekokers and Niks hang so rooi soos wingerdblaar by Hexrivier by Boerneef, Ballade vir ‘n koningsdogter by ID du Plessis and Windliedjie and Toemaar die donker man by Ingrid Jonker.

She was the first recipient of a medal of honour awarded by the ‘South African Academy for Arts and Science’ for her contribution to light Afrikaans music in 1997.

"[2] ‘Debuut’ (1979), ‘ ’n Jaar in my lewe’ (1980), ‘Vir Jou’ (1981), ‘Jy is te dierbaar’ (1983) ‘Laurika op versoek’ (1985) and ‘Encore!

With ‘Encore!Laurika’ Chris Torr emerged on the scene as a songwriter with tracks such as ‘Miekie’ and ‘Die ballade van Jakob F de Beer’.

Directed by Nigel Vermaas: Market Theatre For Taubie Kushlick, at the Chelsea Theatre Performed with Donald Swann (of Flanders and Swann-fame); the Soweto Teacher's Choir; Mara Louw and Will Bernard in an evening with Donald Swann, his own music and his musical compositions of Van Wyk Louw poems.