Nena
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- This article is about Nena the singer. See also nena (disambiguation).
Nena |
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Nena (born Gabriele Susanne Kerner on March 24, 1960 in Hagen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany) is a singer who rose to international fame in 1984 with the New German Wave song "99 Luftballons" (German for "99 Air Balloons", but the English translation of the song is called "99 Red Balloons"). "Nena" was also the name of the band with whom she released the song. With the re-recording and subsequent release of some of her old tracks, her career saw a second wind in 2002.
Biography
Nena acquired her nickname, "Nena", derived of the Spanish "Niña", meaning "little girl" at the age of three, while on a vacation to Spain with her parents.
Her musical career began in 1977 when guitarist Rainer Kitzmann offered her a position as the lead singer in his band, The Stripes. The group had a minor hit with the song "Ecstasy", but never achieved mainstream success, and soon disbanded.
In 1981 Nena and her boyfriend Rolf Brendel moved to West-Berlin, where they met future "Nena" band members, guitarist Carlo Karges, keyboard player Uwe Fahrenkrog-Petersen, and bass player Jürgen Dehmel. In 1982 the band, "Nena", released their first single, "Nur geträumt" ("Only dreamt"), which became an instant hit in Germany after the band appeared on the German television show "Musikladen". The single reportedly sold 40,000 copies the day after the song appeared on the show and reached number two in the German charts.
In 1983 the band released its first album "Nena", which contained the singles "Leuchtturm" ("Lighthouse") and "99 Luftballons" ("99 Balloons"). 99 Luftballons became a number-one hit in Germany in 1983, and went on to major international chart success the following year, an English version hitting number one in the UK and the original German version hitting number two in the US. It was also a huge hit in many other countries, and to this day it is one of the most well-known German rock songs in many parts of the world. While 99 Luftballons was Nena´s only hit in the Anglophonic world, the band continued to enjoy success in several European countries in the following years.
The band split in 1987, and Nena went solo hereafter. During the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s her chart-success in Germany was modest, but she has made a comeback in Germany in the 2000s with the release of new versions of some of her old hits.
In October 2007, Nena released a new album entitled "Cover Me", made up entirely of cover songs. The first single from this album is a cover of the old Isley Brothers hit Caravan of Love and features Duncan Townsend. She also released the single, "Ich Kann nix Dafür" ("It's Not My Fault") in April of 2007 for the film, Vollidiot. Besides her singing career, she has also voiced the character Saphira for the German dub of the movie Eragon and the role of the Princess for the German version of Arthur and the Invisibles.
Discography
Albums
- The Stripes (1980) as The Stripes
- Nena (1983) #1 GER
- ? (Fragezeichen) (1984) #1 GER
- 99 Luftballons (1984)
- Feuer und Flamme (1985) #2 GER
- It's All In The Game (1985)
- Eisbrecher (1986) #45 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 nich (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 Live Nena (2004) #31 GER
- Willst du mit mir gehn (2005) #2 GER
- Cover me #6 GER
Bootleg albums
Singles
Group
| Year | Title | Chart Positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| GER Singles | |||
| 1982 | "Nur geträumt" | #2 | Nena |
| 1983 | "99 Luftballons" | #1 (also #1 UK, #2 USA, #1 MEX) | 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 | Feuer und Flamme |
| 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 | "Du kennst die Liebe nicht" | -- | Feuer und Flamme |
| 1986 | "Mondsong" | #37 | Eisbrecher |
| 1987 | "Engel der Nacht" | -- | 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 |
| 1990 | "Im Rausch der Liebe" | - | Wunder gescheh'n |
| 1992 | "Manchmal ist ein Tag ein ganzes Leben" | #48 | Bongo Girl |
| 1992 | "Ohne Ende" | Bongo Girl | |
| 1992 | "Conversation" | Bongo Girl | |
| 1993 | "Viel zuviel Glück" | Und Alles Dreht Sich | |
| 1993 | "N Zentimeter Liebe" (feat. Kralle Krawinkel) | ||
| 1994 | "Hol mich zurück" | Und Alles Dreht Sich | |
| 1994 | "Ich halt dich fest" | Und Alles Dreht Sich | |
| 1995 | "Weißes Schiff" | Wunder Gescheh'n | |
| 1997 | "Ganz gelassen..." | #75 | Jamma Nich |
| 1997 | "Jamma Nich" | Jamma Nich | |
| 1997 | "Alles Was Du Willst" | Jamma Nich | |
| 1997 | "Auf Dich Und Mich" | Jamma Nich | |
| 1998 | "Was hast du in meinem Traum gemacht" | #91 | Wenn alles richtig ist, dann Stimmt was nich |
| 1998 | "Dann Fiel Mir Auf" | Wenn alles richtig ist, dann Stimmt was nich | |
| 1998 | "Das Ist Normal?" | Wenn alles richtig ist, dann Stimmt was nich | |
| 1999 | "Ich umarm' die ganze Welt" | #98 | Tobias Totz und sein Löwe |
| 2001 | "Carpe diem" | #66 | Chokmah |
| 2002 | "Oldschool Baby" (with Westbam) | #21 | Alles Gute - Die Singles 1982-2002 |
| 2002 | "99 Luftballons (New Version)" | #28 | Nena feat. Nena |
| 2003 | "Leuchturm (New Version)" | #7 | Nena feat. Nena |
| 2003 | "Wunder gescheh'n" (New Version) (with Friends) | #9 | Nena feat. Nena (2003 Edition) |
| 2003 | "Anyplace, Anywhere, Anytime" (feat. Kim Wilde) | #3 | Nena feat. Nena |
| 2003 | "Nur geträumt (New Version)" | #79 | Nena feat. Nena |
| 2004 | "Bang Bang" (feat. Toktok) | #51 | |
| 2004 | "Schade" (feat. Sam Ragga Band) | #37 | The 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 |
| 2006 | "Caravan of Love"(feat. Duncan Townsend) | #29 | Tribute to Bravo |
| 2007 | "Ich kann nix dafür"(feat. Olli and Remmler) | #10 | Vollidiot Soundtrack |
| 2007 | Mach die Augen Auf | #19 | Cover Me |
| 2007 | Ich werde dich lieben | #33 | Cover Me |
Filmography (for the lead singer)
- Gib Gas ich will Spaß (1983)
- Richy Guitar (1985)
- Der Unsichtbare (1987)
- Tobias Totz und sein Löwe (1999)
- Die Abrafaxe - Unter schwarzer Flagge (2001)
- Madou und das Licht der Fantasie (2003)
- Eragon (2006)
- Arthur und die Minimoys
External links
