Nina Hagen, known throughout the world, and especially in her homeland, in Germany, as the godmother of punk, became popular thanks to her extraordinary creativity, unique voice and active social position. In this article we will follow the creative path of the famous singer.
Nina Hagen: biography
Nina was born in East Berlin East Germany in 1955. The name given to her at birth is Katarina. The mother of the singer was the famous German actress Eva-Maria Hagen. In the early 70s, the young Nina, who dreamed of following in her mother's footsteps, failed at the entrance exams at the theater institute and decided to study music. In the GDR, Nina Hagen became a soloist with the Automobil team. In 1972, the young singer’s family moved from East Berlin to West, where Nina organized her own group - Nina Hagen Band, with which she recorded two albums that became very popular in Germany.
Having dissolved the group, the singer focused on her solo career and her own work, having recorded several double albums (in English and German), Nina Hagen gained popularity and interest in her music abroad. For several years, the singer moved to New York. In the 80s, Nina stood up to protect animals, became interested in world religions and, according to her, saw a UFO.
In the 90s, the punk singer experimented with new musical directions, released the most popular hits and became the leading television show on German television. The next decade marked the return of Nina Hagen to her native Germany for permanent residence, the singer worked on several joint projects with world musicians, and also starred in the German cover version of Snow White, a film called 7 Dwarfs.
Music
The musical creativity of Nina Hagen is distinguished by innovation and a combination of different musical styles, as well as a wide theme of songs. The singer several times during her career moved away from the origins of punk and went deeper into electronics. Long before this trend became mainstream, fans associated it with the name of such a performer as Nina Hagen. The singer’s albums have been released since 1978, and today there are 19 studio recordings and many joint compositions with such outstanding musicians as Apocalyptica, Pamela Anderson, Udo Lindenberg, Adamski, Thomas D, Meret Becker and Lena Lovic.
Among the musical achievements of Nina Hagen, a separate point is the work with the work of the German playwright and poet Bertold Brecht. In 1999, the singer recorded the "Three Penny Opera" in its entirety. The voice of Nina Hagen, which has a wide amplitude, allowed her to successfully portray various characters of the famous work of Brecht. In addition, she became one of the first to perform on the stage of Ave Maria.
In 1998, a German punk diva recorded the official anthem of FC Union Berlin. In 2003, Nina took part in recording a cover version of Rammstein's song “Seemann” with a quartet of Finnish cellists Apocalyptica. After the release of the single and the video for it, critics rated the song as one of the best interpretations of Rammstein's work.
Influences
A strong influence on the work of the godmother of punk rock had an accidental meeting with UFOs. After 1981, not only the theme of Nina Hagen's songs changed, but also the style of their performance. In some Russian publications, German punk diva was not unreasonably compared with the strangest star of the Soviet rock scene Zhanna Aguzarova. Under the influence of what she saw, Nina Hagen named her daughter Cosma (from the word "cosmos"). In addition, Nina is interested in Hinduism. This religion had an impact not only on personal life, but also on the work of the singer. Elements of Indian mythology, as well as religious tunes, which in the mid-80s began to get carried away by Nina Hagen (mantras, bhajans and ragas), have since begun to appear almost regularly in the singer’s work. In 1999, she recorded a double album, which for the most part covered the themes of ancient Indian philosophy and religion. The second name of Nina’s daughter, Shiva, is a tribute to the supreme god of Shaivism.
Activism
Nina Hagen is an active animal rights activist. She repeatedly recorded musical compositions in support of movements against animal cruelty, among them the song manifesto Don't Kill the Animals, the German-language version of Michael Jackson's single We Are the World, as well as a commercial for PETA, in which, apart from German punk -divas starred Pamela Anderson.
Nina Hagen is a vegetarian. The singer repeatedly spoke out against cruel treatment of people accused of political and pseudo-political crimes, innocently convicted and sentenced to unjustifiably cruel punishments.
Personal life
The worldview of young Nina Hagen was influenced by her stepfather, Wolf Birman - a famous poet and dissident who was expelled from the GDR for a controversial theatrical production about the need to remove the Berlin wall. Birman in Germany, and then to the UK, was followed by Nina and her mother.
Nina Hagen has two children: Cosma's daughter Shiva Hagen (born in 1981) and son Otis Chevalier-Hagen (born in 1989). The singer was married six times, the longest marriage - with the Frenchman Frank Chevalier. After the sixth divorce, Nina Hagen began to adhere to celibacy.