At Home With a Jewish Psychic

Daughter of a Jewish Iraqi refugee and granddaughter to Polish Holocaust survivors, astrologer Jessica Lanyadoo likens her mixed upbringing—both Ashkenazi and Sephardi—to someone with a “biracial background.” Perhaps it is this dual heritage that gifted her with an unusual amount of openness and tolerance. These same qualities have helped make Lanyadoo wildly successful as a psychic, astrologer, and medium; she charges over $250 a session, and waiting time for an appointment with her can run months long.

Lanyadoo’s home is a perfect reflection of her background: Judaism is “a huge part of who I am,” Lanyadoo told me. In this video tour of her home in San Francisco, Lanyadoo explains exactly what that means.

Tracy Levy is a freelance writer, producer, and multimedia journalist living in New York City. Her Twitter feed is @TrayLev.