Nena

Lore & Background

Gabriele Susanne Kerner was born on 24 March 1960 in Hagen, West Germany, while her family lived in nearby Breckerfeld. She acquired the nickname Nena on a vacation to Mallorca, Spain; Nena is a Catalan word meaning 'baby girl'. She left high school in 1977 without the Abitur and trained as a goldsmith for three years, leaving before obtaining her journeyman's licence. Her musical career began on 2 July 1979 when guitarist Rainer Kitzmann asked her to audition as lead singer for the Stripes. The group disbanded on 3 March 1982, but CBS offered Nena a record deal if she moved to Berlin and sang in German. In May 1982, she moved to West Berlin and formed the band Nena with Rolf Brendel, Carlo Karges, Uwe Fahrenkrog-Petersen, and Jürgen Dehmel. Their first single 'Nur geträumt' was released in August 1982 and gained popularity after a television appearance on 21 August 1982, eventually reaching No. 2 on the German charts in October 1982. In 1983, the band released the album Nena, containing '99 Luftballons', which became a number one hit in West Germany and the Netherlands and later reached No. 2 in the US. The band split in 1987.

Reader's Guide

Nena's significance lies in her role as the most successful German pop singer in chart history, with over 25 million records sold. Her 1983 hit '99 Luftballons' became an international anthem of the Neue Deutsche Welle movement, and its English version '99 Red Balloons' reached No. 1 in the UK. After a period of reduced commercial success in the 1990s, she rekindled her solo career in 2002 with the album Nena feat. Nena, produced by former band colleague Uwe Fahrenkrog-Petersen. This comeback led to further hits, including the 2005 single 'Liebe ist', which reached No. 1 in Germany 22 years after '99 Luftballons', the longest span between first and last number one in German chart history. Her legacy includes founding her own record label in 2009 and maintaining chart success into the 2010s.

Did You Know?

• Nena's nickname comes from the Catalan word for 'baby girl', acquired on a family vacation to Mallorca.
• In 1983, Nena made headlines in the British press for having unshaved armpits, which she later attributed to simply not knowing it was considered unusual.
• Her 2005 single 'Liebe ist' reached No. 1 in Germany 22 years after '99 Luftballons', the longest span between first and last number one in German chart history.
• Since 2009, Nena has released music through her own record label, The Laugh & Peas Company.