Nena on DeBaser: reviews, highlights and NDW roots

Nena

Musician

Forfans of ndw, 80s pop/new wave listeners, german pop-rock devotees, and cover-album explorers.
4 Reviews 1 Definitions 1 Charts

The Profile

German singer Gabriele “Nena” Kerner rose to fame in the early 1980s as the frontwoman of the Nena band within the Neue Deutsche Welle, scoring the international hit 99 Luftballons. After the band’s 1981–1987 run, she continued a long solo career spanning pop, new wave and electronic-leaning works, including the acclaimed Chokmah, the covers set Cover Me, and the energetic Oldschool. She also founded her own label, The Laugh And Peas Company.

Fronts the Nena band (1981–1987) with Uwe Fahrenkrog (keyboards), Carlo Karges (guitar), Jürgen Dehmel (bass), Rolf Brendel (drums); key NDW figure; major hit 99 Luftballons (1983); ongoing solo career; founded The Laugh And Peas Company.

DeBaser’s reviews frame Nena as far more than 99 Luftballons: the Nena band’s NDW-era spark leads into a long, shape-shifting solo career. ? Fragezeichen refines the early pop-wave formula; Chokmah is praised as her standout, steeped in soul/electronic textures. Cover Me shows broad interpretive range, while Oldschool revs up with agile synth-pop and electro-rock. Overall tone: admiring, analytical, and clearly pro-Nena.

Notable Quotes

❝ The Nena Band, an ensemble active from 1981 to 1987

❝ "Chokmah" is the undisputed highlight of her production.

❝ Ladies and gentlemen, I don't know about you, but in the face of such a career, I bow; to me, Nena is a point of reference, a certainty, an example.