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Two Artists End Concerts Over Coronavirus Measures In Germany
Rod Clemen/Universal Images Group via Getty Images – Nena performs at Danish music festival SmukFest 2019 in Skanderborg.
The iconic singer wasn’t allowed to give an encore after her recent July 25 gig in Berlin, because her fans didn’t remain inside their boxes.
Two iconic German artists, Nena and Helge Schneider, had their recent gigs cut short over coronavirus measures – the former involuntarily, the latter by choice.
Nena, who sold some 25 million records and even scored a number-two single in the U.S. with her 1984 anti-war hit, 99 Red Balloons, gave an open-air concert in Berlin Schönefeld on Sunday, July 25, as part of the “Unter Freiem Himmel” (under the open sky) concert series.
Till Sponer, @tillsponer.foto – The setup at the “Unter Freiem Himmel” concert series.
During a performance by DJ Robin Schulz on July 24.
The audience was separated into groups and asked to remain inside their allocated boxes, which were made up of empty bottle crates and placed at a distance to each other. Video footage recorded towards the end of Nena’s performance shows many fans, who’ve left their boxes to dance together in front of the stage.
Addressing her fans, Nina says, “they are threatening to abort the show because you aren’t returning to your, as they call it, boxes. I leave it up to your responsibility to do so or not. Everyone is allowed to decide this freely, just as everyone is allowed to decide freely if they want to get vaccinated or not.”
Back in February, Nena had declared via social media that there would never be a two-tier society at her concerts. “You’re all always welcome!”, she wrote, which she reiterated during her Berlin concert.
She said, the coronavirus crisis was being politicized, which “sucked,” and pointed to the previous day, when some 80,000 people were allowed to march through Berlin to celebrate Christopher Street Day, July 24.
“So pull the plug or have police take me off stage (…), I’m sick of this.”
– The setup at the “Strandkorb Open Air” concerts.
Helge Schneider wasn’t feeling it.
She remembered the drive-in concerts she played in 2020 to maintain some form of contact with her fans. She pointed out how concertgoers hadn’t been allowed to roll down their windows and sing along.
“The question isn’t what we’re allowed to do, the question is what we’re willing to stand for,” she concluded her brief rant before finishing her concert with the German original version of the aforementioned “99 Red Balloons.”
According to local news reports, Nena was set to return for an encore, however, the promoter didn’t allow it after having unsuccessfully tried to get fans to return to their boxes.
Two days prior, iconic German comedian, jazz musician, multi-instrumentalist, author, actor film and theatre director, Helge Schneider, left the stage mid-performance.
– Helge Schneider.
Iconic German comedian, jazz musician, multi-instrumentalist, author, actor film and theatre director iconic German comedian, jazz musician, multi-instrumentalist, author, actor film and theatre director.
The July 23 gig in Augsburg was part of the “Strandkorb Open Air” concert series happening all over the country, where the audience is sat in roofed wicker beach chairs.
Schneider said, he wasn’t able to build a connection with the audience. What is more, since people had to order food and beverages online pre-show, staff was walking around in front of the stage delivering the items, which was driving him “insane,” by his own admission.
He briefly attempted to resume the program – a Helge Schneider performance is heavily reliant on improvisation – but didn’t find the inspiration in the end, at which point he said, “I have to say this pisses me off. I can’t be bothered anymore. I’m aborting the ‘Strandkorb’ concerts at this point. I’m very sorry, maybe you can get your money back.
“It really isn’t fun. You have absolutely no contact with the audience, also people are walking around all the time. I’m very sorry, please appreciate that I, as an artist, can’t do anything under these circumstances. We’ve given it our all, there’s no [feedback], it’s not your fault, the system’s simply flimsy and stupid.”
After that, Schneider left the stage. He released a video statement on social media the day after, reiterating that he felt “immensely disturbed” by staff delivering food and drinks items, admitting that he didn’t known what they were even doing until after the gig.
Scheider said the system had distracted him, which meant he couldn’t maintain his concentration over a long period. “That’s why I aborted the concert. I need to be honest, I don’t want to give a shit performance. I don’t just rattle off, I invent things during the concert. After all, I want to entertain people. I didn’t succeed at that yesterday. I hope we see each other again under better conditions.”
The promoter of the “Strandkorb Open Air” concert series are reportedly considering legal action against Schneider for ending the concert prematurely.