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)
Viva Las Vegas
Nina Hagen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Gonna set my soul on fire
Got a whole lot of money that's ready to burn,
So get those stakes up higher
There's a thousand pretty women waitin' out there
And they're all livin' devil may care
And I'm just the devil with love to spare
Viva las vegas, viva las vegas
How I wish that there were more
Than the twenty-four hours in the day
'cause even if there were forty more
I wouldn't sleep a minute away
Oh, there's black jack and poker and the roulette wheel
A fortune won and lost on ev'ry deal
All you need's a strong heart and a nerve of steel
Viva las vegas, viva las vegas
Viva las vegas with you neon flashin'
And your one armbandits crashin'
All those hopes down the drain
turnin' day into nighttime
Turnin' night into daytime
If you see it once
You'll never be the same again
I'm gonna keep on the run
I'm gonna have me some fun
If it costs me my very last dime
If I wind up broke up well
I'll always remember that I had a swingin' time
I'm gonna give it ev'rything I've got
Lady luck please let the dice stay hot
Let me shout a seven with ev'ry shot
Viva las vegas, viva las vegas,
Viva, viva las vegas
Nina Hagen's song "Viva Las Vegas" is an ode to the excitement and thrill of the city of dreams. The bright lights and the fast-paced lifestyle of Las Vegas attract Hagen's devilish persona, which is looking for love and adventure. The lyrics convey how the city has a magnetic pull towards it that makes people go to any length to experience it. Hagen's wish for more than twenty-four hours in a day is a testament to the endless amount of things to do in the city that never sleeps.
The gambling references in the song highlight the high stakes and how one can easily lose everything on a simple card game. Hagen also mentions the allure of the pretty women who are carefree and living life to the fullest, which only adds to the temptation of the city even more. The references to day turning into night and vice versa symbolize how time doesn't quite work the same way in Las Vegas. The chorus line's repetition of "Viva Las Vegas" conveys a sense of celebration and excitement and serves as an anthem for the city's energy.
Line by Line Meaning
Bright light city gonna set my soul
The vibrant city is about to ignite a fire within my soul
Gonna set my soul on fire
The energy and excitement of the city will fill me with passion
Got a whole lot of money that's ready to burn,
I have a large sum of money that I'm willing to spend recklessly
So get those stakes up higher
I'm ready to bet big and win big
There's a thousand pretty women waitin' out there
The city is full of attractive and lively women
And they're all livin' devil may care
These women are living life without any constraints or worries
And I'm just the devil with love to spare
I'm a passionate man with plenty of love to give
Viva las vegas, viva las vegas
Long live the vibrant and exciting city of Las Vegas
How I wish that there were more
I wish there were more hours in the day to enjoy this city
Than the twenty-four hours in the day
There simply isn't enough time to experience everything this city has to offer
'cause even if there were forty more
Even with more time, I would still want more
I wouldn't sleep a minute away
I don't want to waste any time sleeping when there's so much fun to be had
Oh, there's black jack and poker and the roulette wheel
The city is full of exciting gambling opportunities
A fortune won and lost on ev'ry deal
People win and lose a lot of money with each game they play
All you need's a strong heart and a nerve of steel
To succeed in gambling, you need to be fearless and have a strong will
Viva las vegas, viva las vegas
Long live the vibrant and exciting city of Las Vegas
Viva las vegas with you neon flashin'
The neon lights of the city are an exciting and integral part of the experience
And your one armbandits crashin'
The sound of the slot machines adds to the lively atmosphere of the city
All those hopes down the drain
Many people come to Las Vegas with high hopes, but end up losing everything
turnin' day into nighttime
The excitement of the city makes it easy to lose track of time and sense of day and night
Turnin' night into daytime
People stay up all night experiencing everything the city has to offer, making night seem like day
If you see it once
If you experience the city once
You'll never be the same again
You'll be forever changed by the excitement and energy of the city
I'm gonna keep on the run
I'm not going to stop experiencing and enjoying the city
I'm gonna have me some fun
I'm going to enjoy myself to the fullest extent
If it costs me my very last dime
Even if I end up broke, I'm willing to spend all my money on this experience
If I wind up broke up well
Even if I end up with nothing, I won't regret the memories and experiences I've had
I'll always remember that I had a swingin' time
I'll never forget the fun I had in Las Vegas
I'm gonna give it ev'rything I've got
I'm going to put my all into experiencing everything the city has to offer
Lady luck please let the dice stay hot
I'm hoping for good luck in my gambling endeavors
Let me shout a seven with ev'ry shot
I hope to win big with every pull of the slot machine lever or roll of the dice
Viva las vegas, viva las vegas,
Long live the vibrant and exciting city of Las Vegas
Contributed by Isaac N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
SWSimpson
Amazing... I love her so much
Markus R
Nina did fine on that old Elvis tune. She looks amazing, but the miming doesn't suit her really - she's a real singer!!!
Ulf Ottosson SWE
Best shit ever, i´m a 70´st. Punk 4 ever :)
Dalaker Daniel
Prim Nina 🍻💊🍻
Stink Fistula
Bowie's bass player John K
Ulf Ottosson SWE
Pitty they forced her to do this...;(
Bruno Schell
I don’t think anyone could have forced her to do anything...
Matt Ebert Music
HE:LL YEAH MUFUKAH!! You kool baby