welt.de: An East German export hit conquers the USA

In their home village the four boys were outsiders, now they drive millions of European girls into hysteria and also record stores. Now Germany’s most successful popband is trying to make it in the most difficult music market in the world. It could really work.

The night was short for Magna and Marsha. Since early in the morning the 17 year old twins are standing in front of the Rockefeller Center in Manhattan. “Twelve hours in the rain,” they are screaming happily, as if they had spent all day in an amusement park. The both coloured Americans are shaking a little cause they are only wearing short tops. What they want to see are four strong boys from Loitsche next to Magdeburg. They are performing in a TV show tonight.

“T-O-K-I-O-H-O-T-E-L,” Marsha screams. From excitement her handbag is falling on the floor. Make-up, eye pencil and lip gloss are rolling over the floor towards the studio. “Getting up and moving on,” is told to the girls. The show is about to start, host Conan O’Brien announces the German band. “Tokio what?” an older audience member is whispering to his wife. She just raises her shoulders.

In Europe Tokio Hotel fill up the largest stadiums, now Germany’s most successful popband wants to conquer the most important music market, the USA. A bold move, since most European acts don’t make it on the US market. Even superstar Robbie Williams or Ronan Keating were ignored in the USA, the German Nena, Milli Vanilli, Scorpions and Rammstein made a few little successes in America. But that’s about it.

The manager from Universal, worlds largest record company, of course also knows this too well. They however want to try to expand Tokio Hotel worldwide. And how it is going now, it’s going well. Two weeks ago their first album in the USA “Scream” (Schrei) was released. This week it entered the Billboard Charts at number 39. Such an opening success has no German band ever had.

“The boys are awesome,” tells Frank Briegmann, who runs Universal Germany. “With them we can write pop history.” Nothing less as the conquering of the entire world is on his mind. If the move to America really works out, next year also Asia and South America will follow.

Tokio Hotel is at the moment the record company’s biggest insurance of success. In a time where you only hear about record company’s because they are making losses on record sales, this is worth gold. Originally the boys had a contract at SonyBMG. Cause the record label shorted the budget for new talent, the responsible manager let it go. Universal chief Briegmann insured himself of a band, the SonyBMG manager was fired. Foolish managing should also be punished.

The musicians between 18 and 21 years earn according to calculations around 3% from the 300 million euro year earning from Universal Germany. Since their discovery three years ago Tokio Hotel has sold more than five million records – which is good for about 30 to 40 million euro. On top of that comes a two digit million amount for fan merchandise such as sheets, shoes or doormats. No other German band sells so many articles of fan devotion.

Every eight weeks Briegmann meets up with all the other chiefs of Universal. Normally the 40 year old brings back a list with new international stars to Berlin, that will be sold in Germany. Though, in the winter of 2006 he had something amazing in his suitcase. His collegues were just as enthusiastic about Tokio Hotel as the German girls. Tokio Hotel became the first German band with a “Priority status”; meaning, every Universal country has to sell the record of the Magdeburgers and market it. “That”, tells Briegmann, “was such a punch.”

A punch, that especially was profitable for Universal Germany. Without doing anything or financing anything, the record company got month after month a two percent piece of the US-sales earnings sent to their bank account. That kind of thing normally only happens the other way around.

Even in countries where Universal isn’t doing any marketing for Tokio Hotel, thanks to the internet fan communities are building. In Israel, teens collected last year 5000 autographs to get the band to play a concert in Tel Aviv.

Tokio Hotel opened a window that was being kept close by the industry for so long. The starting age for fans lies around nine years of age, there isn’t much competition in this ago group. A financial good side effect, because most of the music is being bought by the parents. And those don’t quickly go on the internet to download the songs illegally. They buy real CD’s in the store, it still does exist.

After the Teen band has caused thousands of girls to faint and millions have been driven into hysteria, now it’s the Americans turn. Since the beginning of May the Teen heroes are on promo tour through the USA and are giving interviews like crazy. The first time in English, to be said “we only speak school English,” tells singer Bill. He tells it a little painful but event that is fallen into good place. The music magazine “Rolling Stone” praised Bill’s “Extraordinary pronunciation,” because it is kind of charming.

When Bill started singing the first note of the single “Ready, Set, Go!” in a New York TV studio, the twins Marshe and Magda are screaming, falling into each others’ arms. Around the girls the little more older studio guests are just taking the way to load Rock sounds. Some of them are holding their hands over their ears. The twins however look with tears in their eyes, just like in love teens.

Nevertheless, Bill rocks the kind of small audience as if he were standing in front of thousands of fans. Record boss Breigmann knew how to recognise this talent, and in 2005 it was already there. Before the first CD was released the boys had to play in front of 300 Universal managers in Berlin: “That is the most unheard of audience that you can imagine, but the boys went for it like real pros.”

There are two things that make the pop miracle Tokio Hotel: The lyrics and the personalities. In their songs they tell about every teen trouble like love, suicide or divorce of the parents. Just as extraordinary are the band members themselves, starting with the androgynous singer Bill with his hedgehog hair and black eye pencil around the eyes. His hair tip: “a lot of hairspray and no brushing.”

Even though he looks kind of made, he is not a fabrication of the record company. At nine he already started to colour his hair. It’s no wonder that Bill and his twin brother Tom (with dreadlocks) felt like “Aliens” in their 700 inhabitant village. Together with their noticeable quieter friends Georg and Gustav one of the best pop exports of the country has grown. Something that Bill from the start was convinced that would happen. He has gotten the Tokio Hotel symbol tattooed on his neck, even before the first record was sold in Germany. It was also Bill’s idea to give interview from his sick bed after his vocal cord surgery in March: “It was just boring to me without anything to do.”

Even during the first test performances in February the clubs of Los Angeles and New York were sold out within hours. Up to 2000 dollars were paid by fans on eBay for tickets, while the original price was $18.50 dollars. The “New York Times” made history for the boys with putting them on the cover. It even moved the old rock star with a woman’s history, Tom: “I think I bought about 100 copies of the paper and brought them back home.”

During a signing session at Times Square a few stores had to close because of the turn out of more than 500 girls. Magna and Marsha were also there – they camped outside for two days. The two girls discovered the boys on the internet about four months ago. To also understand the lyrics they are learning themselves German with a dictionary. “They are so cute,” they are screaming after the TV performance and burst into singing “Durch den Monsun”.

While their parents were driving the girls home again, record boss Briegmann and his guest are a few blocks away. To celebrate this “historical moment”, he has invited a group of German TV managers to the USA. In a hotel the record company has set up a meeting to see the band. Like polite little boys the boys shake the old mans’ hands and thank them for coming.

Also here they are doing splendid: “Yes, we were really tired,” “We are happy about how it all went,” “No, no party for us, when we are on tour we go to bed early,” “Of course we can sign an autograph for your niece,” one of the managers is very happy that he finally has a picture of him and the boys. “Now my ex-wife has no more chance with my son.”

Then the band meeting is coming to an end; the guests are leaving again. Only thing what they have remembered this night is that the boys aren’t 21 yet.