From 1972 to 1973, Hagen enrolled in the crash-course performance program at The Central Studio for Light Music in East Berlin. Upon graduation, she joined the band Automobil (picture), which released a well-received album in Germany, including her first hit "Du hast den Farbfilm vergessen" in 1974.
After a concert for a West German labour union in 1976 her stepfather, Wolf Biermann, was forbidden to return to the GDR. Because of their protests against it her mother, Eva-Maria Hagen and Nina were thrown out of GDR in 1977, and followed Biermann to his hometown Hamburg.
Nina subsequently met West-Berlin photographer Jim Rakete (who also produced some bands he shot the cover-photos for - like "Nena" some years later). He brought Nina together with the politically left-wing band "Lokomotive Kreuzberg" (later known as "Spliff"): thus the "Nina Hagen Band" was born.
In 1978 The Nina Hagen Band released their self-titled debut album, which included titles like "TV-Glotzer" (a cover of "White Punks on Dope" by The Tubes) and "Auf'm Bahnhof Zoo".
According to reviewer Fritz Rumler, she thrusts herself into the music, aggressively, directly, furiously, roars in the most beautiful operatic alto, then, through shrieks and squeals, precipitates herself into luminous soprano heights... she parodies, satirises, and howls on stage like a dervish.
Nina Hagen's eccentricity led to big disputes in the band and during a subsequent European tour Hagen decided to leave the band, though she was still under contract to produce a second album in 1979. This LP, Unbehagen (in addition to the obvious pun on her name, in German this also means 'discomfort' or 'unease'), was eventually produced with the band recording their tracks in Berlin and Hagen recording the vocals in Los Angeles, California. It included the single "African Reggae"/"Wir leben immer... noch" (a cover of Lene Lovich's "Lucky Number"). The headless Nina Hagen Band soon developed a successful independent musical career as Spliff.
Meanwhile, Hagen's public persona was steadily creating an increasing media uproar and she became infamous for an appearance on an Austrian talk show called Club 2, in which she performed an explicit simulation of masturbation. She also acted with Dutch sex-drugs-and-rock-'n'-roll legend Herman Brood in the movie Cha Cha, along with Lene Lovich and various Dutch bands.
An European tour with a new band in 1980 was cancelled, she had a love affair with a 16 year old punk from Amsterdam called Noddy (www.noddyriot.co.uk) and sang a RHCP rapduet with him at the OneWorldPoetry festival at the MilkyWay and lived with him in New York and in the Bahamas.
In 1982 her first solo album NunSexMonkRock, a dissonant mix of punk, funk and opera, was a minor hit, and led to a world tour with the No Problem Orchestra.
In 1983 came the album Angstlos and a minor European tour. By this time, Hagen's public appearances were becoming even stranger; over the years they frequently included discussions of God, UFOs, her social and political beliefs, animal rights / vivisection and claims of alien sightings. The English version of Angstlos, 'Fearless', generated two major club hits in America , "Zarah" and the disco/punk/opera classic, "New York New York".
1985's 'Nina Hagen In Ekstasy' fared less well, but it did generate club hits with "Universal Radio" and a cover of "Spirit In The Sky", and it also featured her hardcore punk take on Frank Sinatra's "My Way", which had been one of her signature live tunes in previous years. Her contract with CBS over, she released the Punk Wedding EP independently in 1987, a celebration of her marriage to an 18-year old punk. It followed an independent 1986 one-off single with Lene Lovich, the anthemic "Don't Kill The Animals".
In 1989 Hagen released the album Nina Hagen which was backed up by another German tour. Now living in Paris with her daughter Cosma Shiva, in 1991 she toured Europe in support of her new album Street.
In 1992 Hagen became the host of a TV show on RTLplus. The following year she released Revolution Ballroom and two years later the German-language album Freud Euch appeared, recorded in English as Beehappy in 1996. Also in 1996, Hagen collaborated with electronic music composer Christopher Franke on "Alchemy of Love", the theme song for the Tenchi Universe movie Tenchi Muyo! in Love.
In 1998, Hagen became the host of a weekly science fiction show on the British Sci-Fi-Channel, in addition to embarking on another tour of Germany. In 1999, she released the devotional album Om Namah Shivay, which was distributed exclusively online. She also sang "Witness" on KMFDM's Adios.
Nina has a strong interest in various religions, but that is mainly driven by her urge to build a better world and her own colorful freedom within it.
In 2000, her song Schön ist die Welt became the official song of Expo 2000. The album The Return of the Mother was released in February 2001, accompanied by another German tour.
Hagen dubbed the voice of Sally in the German release of Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas and she also did some voice work in Hot Dogs by Michael Schoemann.
Hagen has been featured on many songs by other bands, for instance Oomph!'s song Fieber, a cover of Rammstein's "Seemann" with Apocalyptica and in 2008 appeared readily on psy-trance act S.U.N. Project's X Black Album, most notably on the fully vocal track We're In Space. She also sang the song "Garota de Berlim" with Brazilian singer Supla in her early years.
Her two children are Cosma Shiva and Otis.
URLs:
BEST archive for Nina Hagen pictures and stuff (regrettably just in German), incl. very old GDR pics like a beautiful one at the age of 18 and one shot by the "Stasi" (together with her stepfather Wolf Biermann - wiki)
Giant Step
Nina Hagen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And sorrows turned your heart to frost,
But I will melt your heart again.
Remember the feeling as a child,
When we woke up in the morning and smiled,
It's time, it's time, it's time we felt like that again
There's just no percentage in remembering the past,
Come with me and leave your yesterdays behind,
Take a giant step outside your mind.
Come with me and leave your yesterdays behind,
Take a giant step outside your mind.
You stare at me in disbelief,
You say for you there's no relief,
But I swear that I will do you no harm.
Don't just sit there in your lonely room,
Just looking back in silent gloom,
No, that's not where you belong
Come with me, I'll show you where.
The taste of life is waiting.
Every day is a whole wonder that's got to be seen
Ooh
Come with me and leave your yesterdays behind,
Take a giant step outside your mind.
Come with me and leave your yesterdays behind,
Take a giant step outside your mind.
Come with me and leave your yesterdays behind,
Take a giant step outside your mind.
Won't you come with me and leave your yesterdays behind,
Take a giant step outside your mind
The lyrics of Nina Hagen's "Giant Step" are a call to leave the past behind and embrace life with renewed energy and positivity. The song acknowledges that the pain and disappointment of the past can weigh heavily on the heart, but it also emphasizes that there is always hope for a brighter future. The idea is to recapture the childlike purity of spirit that once allowed us to wake up every morning with a smile on our faces, and to embrace each new day as a miraculous opportunity for growth and discovery.
Hagen sings about the futility of dwelling on the past, and calls on the listener to take a bold step outside of their own minds in order to embark upon a new journey. She encourages her audience to join her in the life-affirming experience of living in the present moment, and experiencing the joy and wonder of each new day. The song also highlights the importance of human connection and companionship as we navigate the ups and downs of life together.
Overall, "Giant Step" is a powerful and evocative call to action, urging all of us to rise above our past pain and negativity, and to embrace the limitless potential of the present moment with open arms.
Line by Line Meaning
Though you've played at love and lost,
Even though you have tried to love and have failed in the past.
And sorrows turned your heart to frost,
And your bad experiences have left your heart cold and emotionless.
But I will melt your heart again.
But I will make you feel and love again.
Remember the feeling as a child,
Think about the joy and innocence you felt as a child.
When we woke up in the morning and smiled,
When waking up and smiling was our natural response to life.
It's time, it's time, it's time we felt like that again
It's time to regain that sense of joy and wonder we had as children.
There's just no percentage in remembering the past,
There is no benefit to constantly dwelling on the past.
It's time you learn to live again and love at last
It's time to start living and loving again.
Come with me and leave your yesterdays behind,
Come with me and forget about your past experiences.
Take a giant step outside your mind.
Take a huge step out of your current mindset.
You stare at me in disbelief,
You look at me with suspicion and doubt.
You say for you there's no relief,
You believe that there is no way to escape your current situation.
But I swear that I will do you no harm.
But I promise that I won't hurt you or make things worse.
Don't just sit there in your lonely room,
Don't just stay alone and disconnected in your room.
Just looking back in silent gloom,
Just dwelling on your past mistakes and feeling miserable.
No, that's not where you belong
That is not a healthy or productive place for you to be.
Come with me, I'll show you where.
Come with me, and I will reveal a better path for you to take.
The taste of life is waiting.
The joys of living are available and waiting for you to experience.
Every day is a whole wonder that's got to be seen
Every day is a new opportunity to experience something amazing.
Ooh
Exclamation of excitement and encouragement.
Won't you come with me and leave your yesterdays behind,
Will you please come with me and forget about your past experiences.
Take a giant step outside your mind
Take an enormous step out of your current mindset.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
James Kennedy
Taj Mahal cover . NINA is the greatest female rock vocalist ever .