Initially performing as the vocalist for the Stripes, Nena assembled her own group after they disbanded, bringing in Carlo Karges (guitar), Uwe Fahrenkrog-Petersen (keyboards), Jürgen Dehmel (bass) and Rolf Brendel (drums) to form her band. In their home country, Nena found immediate success with her debut single, "Nur Geträumt," which was a number one hit in 1982.
But it was with their next single, "99 Luftballons" in 1983 that Nena was to shoot to international fame, with the song quickly becoming a worldwide hit, recording an english-language version to spread her music to new audiences. The song reached number one in the UK and number two in the US charts, becoming one of the best known German pop songs of all time.
However, despite the success, the band's popularity quickly declined, with Nena embarking on a solo career in 1989. Nena released albums regularly throughout the 90s, writing songs herself and with co-authors, taking a break between performing due to becoming pregnant. Her music remained an exciting blend of the Beatles rock & roll with her recognisable punk edge. During this time she became a frequent face on German TV on various variety shows.
In 2001, she released a progressive electronica-influenced album, "Chokmah," but it failed to make any real success. Yet Nena was to again make inroads in the modern music scene, with her 20th anniversary live album, "Feat. Nena: Live," becoming a runaway success, reminiscent of her meteoric rise to fame after her 1983 single. Her following album, 2005's "Willst Du Mit Mir Gehn," continued to prove to be successful, becoming certified Platinum and appealing to a new audience with her heavy rock sound. Nena continued to establish her music through a 2009 covers album, a greatest hits record released in 2010 and her 2012 album "Du Bist Gut", continuing to appeal to a wide audience. Her performances have remained energetic, drawing large numbers of fans.
Proving that new wave, as achingly eighties as it was, wasn’t just a genre for the English-speaking world, Nena broke through in 1983 with her classic pop track ’99 Luftballons’; the song went to number two on the U.S. charts and fared similarly across the German’s home continent, but she did indeed go on to re-record it in English the following year, just for the benefit of our ignorance of other languages. You can probably chalk her up as a one hit wonder, though, outside of her home country at least; her original, eponymous band broke up in 1987, with Nena herself then going on to have modest success across Europe in her own right, continuing to release solo records to this day. In 2002, the celebration of her twentieth anniversary in music helped her to return to serious prominence in her native Germany, with a new DVD reaching platinum status. Her popularity over there continues to this day, with an arena run across the country planned for later this year; as usual, she’ll be joined by her live band to run through choice cuts from her fifteen albums to date. In 2004, she made a rare appearance in the UK, playing ’99 Luftballons’ both in German and English at Shepherd’s Bush Empire with Howard Jones; she’s not been back since, so jumping on a plane might be your best bet for the foreseeable future.
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