Nena
From Free net encyclopedia
- This article is about Nena the singer. See also nena (disambiguation).
{{Infobox_band
| band_name = Nena
| image = Image:Nena21.jpg
| years_active = 1981-1987 (group)
1987-present (solo)
| country = Germany
| music_genre = German Pop
| record_label = Warner Music
}}
Nena (born March 24, 1960 in Hagen, North Rhine-Westphalia) is a German singer who became famous with the German New Wave song "99 Luftballons" ("99 Red Balloons"). With the re-release of her own hits, Nena's career experience saw a second wind in the year 2002.
Contents |
Biography
Nena was born Gabriele Susanne Kerner in 1960 in Hagen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. She acquired her nickname, "Nena", an alternate version of the Spanish word "niña" (little girl) during a vacation to Spain at the age of three. In 1977 she left high school prior her graduation to receive training as a goldsmith. Around the same time guitarist Rainer Kitzmann offered her to become the lead singer of his band, The Stripes. The group had a minor hit with the song "Ecstasy" but never managed to achieve broad success, and soon split.
In 1981 Nena and her boyfriend Rolf Brendel moved to West-Berlin, where they met their later band members: guitarist Carlo Karges, keyboard player Uwe Fahrenkrog-Petersen and bass player Jürgen Dehmel. A year later the band released their first single, "Nur geträumt" ("Only In Dreams"), which came to fame after a performance on the German television show Musikladen.
The following year the band released its self-titled first album, which contained the singles "Leuchtturm" ("Lighthouse") and "99 Luftballons" ("99 Balloons"). The latter one quite accidentally got into the hands of a few Californian DJs, who helped to promote the song internationally. However, the single managed to became a worlwide #1 hit, becoming Nena's most popular song to date. Nena then released ? (Fragezeichen) in 1984, Feuer und Flamme ("Fire and Flame") in 1985, It's All In The Game (featuring English versions of the songs on Feure und Flamme) and Eisbrecher ("Icebreaker") in 1986. Despite achieving constant success the group decided to go their separate ways in 1987.
Nena started dating Swiss actor Benedict Freitag shortly after the breakup of the band in 1987. The couple had three children together, the first one being Christopher Daniel, who was born disabled due to medical mistakes made during the birth that caused Nena to go into cardiac arrest. He died at the age of 11 months. In 1990 they had twins, Larissa-Maria and Sakias Manuel. After splitting with Freitag, Nena started a relationship with drummer and music producer Philipp Palm from Stuttgart, with whom she has two children, Samuel Vincent (1995) and Simeon Joel (1997). The couple and the four children live in Hamburg today.
Throughout the late 1980s and the 1990s, Nena released a wide range of moderately successful solo albums, most of them consisting of songs for children. Simultaneously she hosted several TV shows, including Metro and the Grand Prix Countdown. In 2002, she celebrated her 20th stage anniversary with the album "Nena feat. Nena", a CD, consisting of new arranged covers of her own hits from the '80s. The jubilee album meant an incredible comeback for Nena, which once again spwaned a number of successful chart entries. She soon released a live DVD. Nena's 2005 album "Willst Du Mit Mir Gehn?" ("Do You Wanna Go With Me?") quickly achieved platinum status as well. The first single from the album, "Liebe ist" ("Love Is"), shot to #1 on the German charts in early 2005, and was used as the theme song for a German telenovella.
In 2006, Nena plans to found a Sudbury school in Hamburg.
Discography
Albums
- The Stripes (1980)
- Nena (1983) #1 GER
- ? (Fragezeichen) (1984) #1 GER
- Feuer Und Flamme (1985) #1 GER
- It's All In The Game (1985) #1 GER
- Eisbrecher (1986) #2 GER
- Wunder Gescheh'n (1989) #23 GER
- Komm Lieber Mai ... (1990) #45 GER
- Nena Die Band (1991)
- Bongo Girl (1992) #32 GER
- Und Alles Dreht Sich (1994) #53 GER
- Nena Singt Die Schönsten Kinderlieder (1994)
- Nena Live (1995)
- Unser Apfelhaus (1995) #69 GER
- Nena Und Die Bambus Bären Bande (1996)
- Jamma Nich (1997) #29 GER
- Nenas Weihnachtsreise (1997) #28 GER
- Wenn Alles Richtig Ist Dann Stimmt Was Nicht (1998) #42 GER
- Nena Macht Rabatz (1999)
- Chokmah (2001) #18 GER
- Nenas Tausend Sterne (2002)
- Nena feat. Nena (2002) #2 GER
- Madou und Das Licht Der Fantasie (2002)
- Nena feat. Nena Live (2004) #31 GER
- Willst Du Mit Mir Gehn? (2005) #2 GER
Singles
Group
| Year | Title | Chart Positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| GER Singles | |||
| 1982 | "Nur Geträumt" | #2 | Nena |
| 1983 | "99 Luftballons" | #1 | Nena |
| 1983 | "Leuchtturm" | #2 | Nena |
| 1983 | "? (Fragezeichen)" | #3 | ? (Fragezeichen) |
| 1984 | "Rette Mich" | #11 | ? (Fragezeichen) |
| 1984 | "Lass Mich Dein Pirat Sein" | #53 | ? (Fragezeichen) |
| 1984 | "Irgendwie, Irgendwo, Irgendwann" | #3 | ? (Fragezeichen) |
| 1985 | "Feuer Und Flamme" | #8 | Feuer Und Flamme |
| 1985 | "Haus Der Drei Sonnen" | #43 | Feuer Und Flamme |
| 1985 | "Jung Wie Du" | #47 | Feuer Und Flamme |
| 1986 | "Mondsong" | #37 | Eisbrecher |
Solo
| Year | Title | Chart Positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| GER Singles | |||
| 1989 | "Wunder Gescheh'n" | #19 | Wunder Gescheh'n |
| 1990 | "Du Bist Überall" | #54 | Wunder Gescheh'n |
| 1992 | "Manchmal Ist Ein Tag Ein Ganzes Leben" | #48 | Bongo Girl |
| 1997 | "Ganz Gelassen" | #75 | Jamma Nich |
| 1998 | "Was Hast Du In Meinem Traum Getan" | #91 | Nur Geträumt |
| 1999 | "Ich Umarm' Die Ganze Welt" | #98 | Sonnenalle (Soundtrack) |
| 2001 | "Carpe Diem" | #66 | Chokmah |
| 2002 | "Ol'school Baby" (with Westbam) | #21 | Right On |
| 2002 | "99 Luftballons 2002" | #28 | Nena feat. Nena |
| 2003 | "Leuchturm 2002" | #7 | Nena feat. Nena |
| 2003 | "Wunder Gescheh'n" (with Friends) | #9 | Red Nose Day (Soundtrack) |
| 2003 | "Anyplace, Anywhere, Anytime" (with Kim Wilde) | #3 | Nena feat. Nena |
| 2003 | "Nur Gerträumt 2003" | #79 | Nena feat. Nena |
| 2004 | "Bang Bang" (with Tok tok tok) | #51 | About ... |
| 2004 | "Schade" (with Sam Ragga Band) | #37 | Sound Of Sam Ragga" |
| 2005 | "Liebe Ist" | #1 | Willst Du Mit Mir Gehn? |
| 2005 | "Willst Du Mit Mir Gehn?" | #6 | Willst Du Mit Mir Gehn? |
| 2005 | "Lass Mich" | #44 | Willst Du Mit Mir Gehn? |
Filmography
- Gib Gas - Ich will Spaß! (1983)
- Tagediebe (1985)
- Der Unsichtbare (1987)
- Tobias Totz und sein Löwe (1999)
- Die Abrafaxe - Unter schwarzer Flagge (2001)
- Madou und das Licht der Fantasie (2003)
External links
fr:Nena it:Nena nl:Nena ja:ネーナ pl:Nena pt:Nena sv:Nena tr:Nena