Gabriele Susanne Kerner
(born 24 Mairch 1960), better kent bi her stage name
Nena
, is a
German
sangster
an
actress
. She rose tae internaitional fame in 1983 wi the
New German Wave
sang "
99 Luftballons
". In 1984, she re-recordit this sang in Inglis as "99 Red Balloons".
[1]
Gabriele Susanne Kerner wis born on 24 Mairch 1960 in
Hagen
,
North Rhine-Westphalie
,
Wast Germany
, while her faimily bidit in the nearhaun toun o
Breckerfeld
. She spent the earliest pairt o her bairnheid in Breckerfeld an later bidit in Hagen. She acquired her elk-name, based on the Spainyie wird "nena" (colloquial for "nina"), or "wee lassie", the age o three, while on a hailiday tae Spain wi her parents. In 1977, she left heich schuil afore graduation, an in the three follaein year she wis trained as a gowdsmith.
Her muisical career began in the simmer o 1979 whan guitarist
Rainer Kitzmann
affered her a poseetion as the lead sanstger in his baund,
The Stripes
. The group haed a minor hit wi the song "Ecstasy", but never achievit mainstream success, an suin disbandit.
In 1981, Nena an her then-cleek
Rolf Brendel
flittit tae
Wast Berlin
, whaur thay trystit futur baund members, guitarist
Carlo Karges
, keybuird player
Uwe Fahrenkrog-Petersen
, an bass player
Jurgen Dehmel
. Thegither thay formit the baund "Nena".
In 1982 "Nena" lowsed thair first single, "Nur getraumt" ("Only dreamt"), whilk became an instant hit in Germany efter the baund kythed on the German televeesion show
Musikladen
. The single reportitly sauld 40,000 copies the day efter the sang kythed on the show an reakit nummer twa in the German chairts.
Internaitional success an baund brakup
[
eedit
|
eedit soorce
]
In 1983 the baund lowsed its first album
Nena
, whilk contained the singles "Leuchtturm" ("Lighthouse") an "
99 Luftballons
" (the Inglis version is cried "99 Red Balloons."). "99 Luftballons" became a nummer-ane hit in Wast Germany in 1983 an went on tae major internaitional chairt sonse the follaein year, an Inglis version hittin nummer ane in the
UK
and the oreeginal German version hittin nummer twa in the
Unitit States
, ahint
Van Halen
's
Jump
. In 1984,
Casey Kasem
's radio show "
American Top 40
" introducit a "mixed" version o the sang, "splicing" the German an American versions thegither. It wis a huge hit in mony ither kintras an aw, an tae this day it is ane o the best-kent German rock sangs in mony pairts o the warld.
Awtho "99 Luftballons" wis Nena's anerlie hit in the
Inglis-speakin warld
, the baund continued tae enjoy success in several European kintras in the follaein years. The baund split in 1987, an Nena went solo thareefter. Nena follae up single "Just a Dream", reakit nummer 70 in the UK chairts in 1984, the B side bein cried "Indianer". A dance version o the A side totally re-written in the 90s wis lowsed tae an unsuspectin audience an became a classic anthem in clubs. Youngsters wis unaware o the sang's oreegins.
Nena stairtit datin Swiss actor
Benedict Freitag
shortly efter the baund separatit in 1987. Benedict is the son o the German actress
Maria Becker
[2]
an Austrian-Swiss actor
Robert Freitag
. The couple haed three childer thegither, the first bein Christopher Daniel, wha wis born disabled allegedly due tae medical mistaks made durin the birth that caused Nena tae gang intae
cardiac arrest
.
[3]
He dee'd at the age o 11 month. In 1990 thay haed twins, Larissa Marie an Sakias Manuel. Efter splittin wi Freitag, Nena stairtit a relationship wi drummer an muisic producer Philipp Palm frae
Stuttgart
, wi wham thay haed twa bairns, Samuel Vincent (1995), an Simeon Joel (1997). The couple an the fower childer currently bide in
Hamburg
. On Christenmas Day 2009, Nena became a grandmither whan Larissa gae birth tae a lassie, Carla Maria.
[4]
Anerlie twa day efter, Nena's son Sakias became a faither tae a lad namit Noah.
[5]
[6]
Ootthrou the 1990s, Nena lowsed a wide range o solo albums, a nummer o thaim consistin o sangs for bairns. Simultaneously, she hostit several TV shows, includin
Metro
an
Countdown Grand Prix
, the German preselection for the
Eurovision Song Contest
, in 1998.
Back-comin tae kenspeckleness
[
eedit
|
eedit soorce
]
In 2002 Nena celebratit her 20t anniversary on stage wi the album
Nena feat. Nena
, a disc consistin o newly arrangit recordins o her hits frae the 1980s. This album markit a backcome for Nena, an spawned a nummer o sonsie chairt entries. The
remak o "Anyplace, Anywhere, Anytime"
as an Inglis-German duet wi
Kim Wilde
wis a hit in various European kintras, reakin the Nummer 1 spot in the Netherlands an Austria, an Nummer 3 in Germany, in 2003. A DVD follaeed: the 2005 album
Willst du mit mir gehn
("Ar Ye Wantin tae Gang wi Me?") whilk swith gat roon tae platinum status. The first single frae the album, "Liebe ist" ("Love Is"), reackit nummer 1 on the German chairts in early 2005, an wis the theme sang for a German telenovela,
Verliebt in Berlin
. Nena's 2005 tour in Germany, Austrick, an Swisserland in November an Dizember 2005 haed several sauld-oot concerts. In 2004, Nena teuk the stage durin the
Howard Jones
20t Anniversary concert at Shepherd's Bush Empire in
Lunnon
. Nena sang "99 Luftballons", wi baith German an Inglis leerics. In 2004, Nena went on stage at the
Mayday Music Festival
, in Dortmund, accompaniet bi the techno duo
Toktok
. She sang the sang "Bang Bang", an wis later jynt on stage bi
DJ Westbam
tae sing the sang "Oldschool Baby". In October 2007, Nena lowsed a new album entitled
Cover Me
, made up entirely o kiver sangs.
David Bowie
,
Rolling Stones
an
Rammstein
are three o the baunds covered. She lowsed the single an aw, "Ich Kann nix Dafur" ("It's not my Fault") in Aprile 2007 for the film,
Vollidiot
(
Complete Idiot
). Nena released a single for her kiver o "She's a Rainbow" bi the Rolling Stones an aw. It wis released in the US an the UK an made No. 42 in the Breetish Chairts. Nena recordit an relowsed a new version o her hit sang "99 Luftballons" in 2009 an aw, whilk mair closely follaes the 1980s oreeginal, in contrast tae her 2002 version. This sang wis first performit in Germany on 6 September 2009. Some pairts o the new version is in French.
Nena lowsed a new single on 4 September 2009, cried "Wir sind wahr", an a new album on the 23rd:
Made in Germany
. She haes developit an interest in the teachins o Indie mystic
Osho (Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh)
in recent years, an practises his meditation methods, an impression o which is featurt in the "Wir sind wahr" video.
[7]
Maist racent, she collaboratit wi the popular techno-rap airtists
Die Atzen
tae produce a new single, "
Strobo Pop
". In 2011 she contributit vocals tae the track "Let Go Tonight" bi
Kevin Costner and Modern West
.
[8]
Besides her singin career, she haes vycit the character
Saphira
for the German dub o the movie
Eragon
an aw an the role o the Princess for the German version o
Arthur and the Invisibles
alangside
Tokio Hotel's
Bill Kaulitz
. Kaulitz haes statit on mony occasions that Nena is his favourite sangster an aw.
Nena is currently ane o the coaches for the Voice of Germany.
In 2007, jointly wi Philipp Palm, Thomas Simmerl, an Silke Steinfadt, she foondit the Neue Schule Hamburg, a schuil follaein the
Sudbury model
.
[9]
Nena wrote an autobiografical
beuk
,
Willst du mit mir gehn
(Ar Ye Wantin tae Gang wi Me?),
[3]
jyntly wi Claudia Thesenfitz, a jurnalist. Nena's contreibutions are her disparate accoonts o various episodes in her life. Maist o Thesenfitz's contreibutions is excerpts frae interviews o mony o Nena's freinds, co-wirkers, an relatives.
- Gib Gas ich will Spaß
(1982)
- Richy Guitar
(1985)
- Der Unsichtbare
(1987)
- Tobias Totz und sein Lowe
(vyce, 1999)
- Die Abrafaxe – Unter schwarzer Flagge
(vyce, 2001)
- Die Affare Semmeling
(TV series) (1999)
- Eragon
(German dub, 2006) (vyce)
- Arthur und die Minimoys
(vyce)
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