Stefan Raab | |
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Born | Stefan Konrad Raab 20 October 1966 |
Occupations |
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Years active | 1990–2015, 2024–present (entertainer) 2018–present (as producer) |
Stefan Konrad Raab (born 20 October 1966) is a German television producer, businessman, and former entertainer and television host. From 1999 to 2015, he hosted the late-night comedy talk show TV total and has also created a number of other television shows, such as Schlag den Raab and Bundesvision Song Contest .
Raab began his TV career hosting the comedy show Vivasion in 1993. He became well known in 1994 after composing a hit single spoofing national football coach Berti Vogts. In the early 2010s, Raab was considered the "most powerful man in German entertainment television". [1]
Raab is also known for his recurring role as producer, writer and performer of German entries to the Eurovision Song Contest between 1998 and 2012. He was the initiator of the national pre-selection show Unser Star für Oslo ("Our Star for Oslo"), in which Germany's winning entry at the 2010 contest in Oslo was determined.
In 2015, Raab ended his career in front of the camera, and by 2018 started focusing entirely on production work.
Raab grew up in Cologne with his sister and their parents, who owned a butcher's shop. He attended Jesuit boarding school Aloisiuskolleg in Bonn. Before entering the entertainment business, he completed an apprenticeship as a butcher in his parents' shop and studied law before dropping out of university after five semesters. [2]
Raab lives in a suburb of Cologne and has two daughters (born 2004 and 2006) with his girlfriend Nike. [3] Other than this, very little is known about Raab, who deliberately hides his private life from the media.
Raab became popular in Germany as the host of the comedy show Vivasion for German music television channel VIVA from 1993 to 1998. [4]
In 1999, he created TV total which began airing in April 2001 on ProSieben, four times a week. While TV total started as a comedy format mainly showing and satirizing funny and embarrassing sequences from other television programs, it soon came to be more of a late night show featuring musical performances—in some ways similar to The Tonight Show with Jay Leno or Late Night with Conan O'Brien . [4] [5]
After a boxing match against Regina Halmich in 2001 (rematch 2007) and a speed skating race against Claudia Pechstein in 2002, he also created several other celebrity sports events that are produced regularly, including TV total Turmspringen (high diving) and TV total Stock Car Crash Challenge (stock car racing). He also brought fun and variety to the show by invented new sports: In November 2003, he initiated the first "official" World Wok racing Championship in Winterberg, Germany. Modified Chinese woks are used to make timed runs down an Olympic bobsled track. The championship took place annually until March 2011, in Innsbruck. [5] The first Autoball EM — Autoball being a version of football played in cars and using an exercise ball to score goals — took place in 2007. [6]
In 2006, Raab invented the game show Schlag den Raab (German for "Beat the Raab", remade for British television as Beat the Star and as Beat Your Host in several other European countries), in which he competed against a contestant in various disciplines. Some episodes of the show lasted more than five hours with excellent ratings.
Raab frequently organizes PokerStars.de Nacht, a poker event featuring some celebrity names in German entertainment. [5]
In September 2012, he announced that he would be hosting a new talk show on ProSieben which would include political guests. It began airing on 11 November 2012. [7] It stood in direct competition with the self-titled talk show hosted by Günther Jauch.
In September 2013, Raab was one of four hosts (one from each big television network) at the federal election debate between chancellor Angela Merkel and her challenger Peer Steinbrück.
In mid-2015, Raab announced his retirement from television and stated that he would remain hosting until the end of the year. [8] The last episode of his show TV total aired on 16 December and the last episode of Schlag den Raab aired on 19 December 2015.
Raab began working as a freelance producer and composer of jingles and radio commercials in 1990 at his own studio in Cologne. [2]
From 1994 onwards, he produced a number of popular songs, including "Böörti Böörti Vogts" (a song about Berti Vogts), "Hier kommt die Maus" ("Here comes the mouse", a tribute to the children's television series Die Sendung mit der Maus ), "Maschen-Draht-Zaun", "Wir kiffen", "Gebt das Hanf frei!" ("Legalise Dope!", featuring Shaggy and samples from German politician Hans-Christian Ströbele), "Hol' mir ma' 'ne Flasche Bier" ("Get me a bottle o' beer", containing samples from then-chancellor Gerhard Schröder), and "Space Taxi" from the soundtrack of the film Traumschiff Surprise – Periode 1 . [6]
He wrote the song for the German entry to the Eurovision Song Contest 1998, Guildo Horn's "Guildo hat euch lieb!", [5] [9] and in the Eurovision Song Contest 2000 he took part himself, performing the nonsense song "Wadde hadde dudde da?". [9] Raab cast the German entry for the 2004 Eurovision Song Contest in a talent show contest called SSDSGPS ("Stefan sucht den Super-Grand-Prix-Star", "Stefan seeks the super Grand-Prix star", satirising the title of the German Idol series Deutschland sucht den Superstar , DSDS). [10] The winner, Max Mutzke, came in eighth place. [9]
Bored with the Eurovision Song Contest, Raab came up with the Bundesvision Song Contest in 2005 (Bundesrepublik Deutschland = Federal Republic of Germany). The contest features representatives from each of the 16 states of Germany and stipulates that their song has to be at least partly in German.
In 2009, Raab was approached by the public broadcaster NDR, a member of the ARD broadcasting consortium, to jointly organise a national preselection in order to determine the German entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2010. It was revealed that Raab initially refused the request, but that his television network ProSieben accepted the offer to work with ARD/NDR. [11] As a result of the cooperation, the talent show contest Unser Star für Oslo (Our Star for Oslo) took place from 2 February 2010 onwards, stretching across 8 shows. Raab took a lead role in the programmes as head of the jury. In the national final on 12 March 2010, Lena Meyer-Landrut emerged as winner. [12] On 29 May 2010, Meyer-Landrut won the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 with the song "Satellite", claiming the first German Eurovision victory in 28 years. [13]
As a musician, Raab is an autodidact, playing various instruments, such as piano, drums, guitar, ukulele, and some wind instruments. [4]
Year | Place of event | Artist | Song | Involvement as | Position | Points |
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1998 | Birmingham, England | Guildo Horn | "Guildo hat euch lieb!" | Composer | 7 | 86 |
2000 | Stockholm, Sweden | Stefan Raab | "Wadde hadde dudde da?" | Performer, composer | 5 | 96 |
2004 | Istanbul, Turkey | Max Mutzke | Can't Wait Until Tonight | Discoverer, composer, mentor | 8 | 93 |
2010 | Oslo, Norway | Lena Meyer-Landrut | "Satellite" | Initiator and jury president of Unser Star für Oslo , mentor | 1 | 246 |
2011 | Düsseldorf, Germany | "Taken by a Stranger" | Initiator and jury president of Unser Song für Deutschland , mentor, host | 10 | 107 |
On 19 May 2011 Raab eventually ended his Eurovision involvement as a host, chairman of the jury, composer and musical producer. [14]
For his television show Vivasion, Raab received the Goldener Löwe (Golden Lion), the predecessor to Deutscher Fernsehpreis (German Television Award), in 1996. For TV total he received the Deutscher Fernsehpreis in 1999 as well as the comedy award Rose d'or in 2001.
For his talent show SSDSGPS he was awarded the Adolf-Grimme-Preis in 2005 in for the "discovery and support of young music talents". On 29 May 2005, Raab received the Deutsch-Türkischer Freundschaftspreis (German-Turkish Friendship Award) for his TV total specials from Istanbul in preparation for the Eurovision Song Contest 2004. He won the Bravo Otto in the category "Comedystar" from 2000 to 2003. In 2000 and 2005, Raab was awarded the ECHO (German music award) as "Best National Producer". In 2005, he also received the ECHO award as "media partner of the year").
On 29 September 2007, Raab received the Deutscher Fernsehpreis for "Best Entertainment Show" for the fifth episode of Schlag den Raab . On 6 February 2008, the show was awarded the Goldene Kamera (Golden Camera). Furthermore, Raab received the media award Bambi on 27 November 2008. [15] In 2009, Raab won the Herbert Award 2009 for Best Television Sports show for TV total Turmspringen. [16]
Madame Tussauds in Berlin has displayed a wax figure of Raab since April 2009. [17]
As the initiator and president of the jury of the show Unser Star für Oslo , Raab was awarded the Bavarian TV Award in 2010.
On 12 November 2011, Raab came second in synchronised diving, teaming with Elton in Munich, at the TV Total Turmspringen 2011 event. This was his first ever podium along with Elton at this event.
Raab has been the subject of lawsuits throughout his career, some of which have gained public attention. The two most referenced cases are:
Maximilian Nepomuk Mutzke is a German singer, songwriter and television personality. He gained public interest in early 2004 when he won SSDSGPS, a talent contest hosted in Stefan Raab's late-night show TV total. Mutzke subsequently qualified for and won the national pre-selection for the Eurovision Song Contest 2004, Germany 12 Points!, and thus represented Germany with his debut single "Can't Wait Until Tonight" that year, eventually finishing eighth in a field of 24 participants. Meanwhile, "Can't Wait Until Tonight" debuted atop the German singles chart and became a top five hit in Austria and Switzerland. His eponymous debut album, a mixture of soul and pop songs in German and English language, was released in January 2005 and also reached number one in Germany, where it was certified gold by the Bundesverband Musikindustrie (BVMI).
TV total is a German late-night television comedy talk show which originally aired from 8 March 1999 to 16 December 2015 on ProSieben, hosted, created and produced by entertainer Stefan Raab. Following a six-year hiatus, it was revived on 10 November 2021 with Sebastian Pufpaff as host.
Alexander Duszat, known professionally as Elton, is a German television presenter and comedian who gained recognition as Stefan Raab's sidekick in the long-running late-night comedy show TV total.
The Bundesvision Song Contest was a song competition held annually between the sixteen states of Germany. Created by German entertainer Stefan Raab and aired live on ProSieben, the show was loosely based on the Eurovision Song Contest, with slightly different rules aiming at promoting German-language music by requiring that at least 50% of each song's lyrics were performed in German.
Beat the Star is a British game show airing on television network ITV. It is the British version of the Schlag den Raab franchise, based on the German game show Schlag den Raab. A candidate who can beat a celebrity in a number of disciplines wins the jackpot, starting at £50,000.
Germany participated in and won the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 with the song "Satellite" written by Julie Frost and John Gordon. The song was performed by Lena. The German entry for the 2010 contest in Oslo, Norway was selected through the national final Unser Star für Oslo, organised by the German broadcaster ARD in collaboration with Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR) and private broadcaster ProSieben. The national final featured 20 competing artists and consisted of five heats, a quarter-final, a semi-final and a final held in February and March 2010. Contestants were selected to advance in the competition via public televote. Two contestants qualified to compete in the final where the winner was selected over two rounds of voting. "Satellite" performed by Lena was selected as the German entry for Oslo after placing among the top two during the first round of voting and ultimately gaining the most votes in the second round.
Lena Johanna Therese Meyer-Landrut, also known by the mononym Lena, is a German singer. She rose to fame after representing Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 in Oslo, winning the event with the song "Satellite". Both "Satellite" and her debut album My Cassette Player (2010) debuted at number one in Germany and became platinum sellers. With her three entries from the German national final Unser Star für Oslo, Meyer-Landrut set an all-time chart record in her home country by debuting with three songs in the top five of the German Singles Chart. She represented Germany for the second consecutive time in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 in Düsseldorf with the song "Taken by a Stranger", finishing in tenth place.
"Satellite" is a song written by American songwriter Julie Frost, and Danish songwriter John Gordon. It is best known as Germany's winning entry at the Eurovision Song Contest 2010, performed by German singer Lena Meyer-Landrut.
Jennifer Braun is a German singer. She was runner-up at the talent show Unser Star für Oslo, Germany's national pre-selection show for the Eurovision Song Contest 2010. Her first music single was "I Care for You".
Sabine Heinrich is a German radio and television presenter.
The Bundesvision Song Contest 2014 was the tenth edition of the annual Bundesvision Song Contest musical event. The contest was held on 20 September 2014 at the Lokhalle in Göttingen, Lower Saxony, following Bosse's win in the 2012 contest in Berlin with the song "So oder so". The contest was hosted by Stefan Raab, and Elton in the green room.
The Bundesvision Song Contest 2005 was the first edition of the annual Bundesvision Song Contest musical event. The contest was held on 12 February 2005 at the König Pilsener Arena in Oberhausen, North Rhine-Westphalia. The contest was hosted by Stefan Raab, Annette Frier, and Oliver Pocher in the green room. It was the first Germany-wide music competition in this format.
The Bundesvision Song Contest 2006 was the second edition of the annual Bundesvision Song Contest musical event. The contest was held on 9 February 2006 at the Mittelhessen-Arena in Wetzlar, Hesse, following Juli's win in the 2005 contest in North Rhine-Westphalia with the song "Geile Zeit". The contest was hosted by Stefan Raab, Janin Reinhardt, and Elton in the green room.
The Bundesvision Song Contest 2007 was the third edition of the annual televised Bundesvision Song Contest, a German reality singing contest. The contest was held on 9 February 2007 at the Tempodrom in Berlin, following Seeed's win in the 2006 contest in Hesse with the song "Ding". The contest was hosted by Stefan Raab, Johanna Klum, and Elton in the green room.
The Bundesvision Song Contest 2008 was the fourth edition of the annual Bundesvision Song Contest musical event. The contest was held on 14 February 2008 at the TUI Arena in Hanover, Lower Saxony, following Oomph! feat. Marta Jandová's win in the 2007 contest in Berlin with the song "Träumst du?". The show was hosted by Stefan Raab, Johanna Klum, and Elton in the green room.
The Bundesvision Song Contest 2010 was the sixth edition of the annual Bundesvision Song Contest musical event. The contest was held on 1 October 2010 at the Max-Schmeling-Halle, Berlin, following Peter Fox's win in the 2009 contest in Brandenburg with the song "Schwarz zu blau". This was the second time that Berlin had hosted the contest, after previously hosting in 2007. The contest was hosted by Stefan Raab, Johanna Klum, and Elton in the green room.
The Bundesvision Song Contest 2011 was the seventh edition of the annual Bundesvision Song Contest musical event. The contest was held on 29 September 2011 at the Lanxess Arena in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, following Unheilig's win in the 2010 contest in Berlin with the song "Unter deiner Flagge". This was the second time that North Rhine-Westphalia had hosted the contest, after previously hosting in the first contest Oberhausen in 2005.
The Bundesvision Song Contest 2012 was the eighth edition of the annual Bundesvision Song Contest musical event. The contest was held on 28 September 2012 at the Max-Schmeling-Halle, Berlin, following Tim Bendzko's win in the 2011 contest in North Rhine-Westphalia with the song "Wenn Worte meine Sprache wären". This was the second time that the Max-Schmeling-Halle arena had hosted the contest after previously hosting in 2010, and Berlin's third time of hosting the contest, after previously hosting in 2007, and 2010. The contest was hosted by Stefan Raab, Sandra Rieß, and Elton in the green room.
Matthias Augustinus Wilhelm Georg Opdenhövel is a German television presenter.
The Free European Song Contest 2020 was the first edition of the Free European Song Contest, organised by the German television network ProSieben and the production company Brainpool TV. It served as an alternative for the Eurovision Song Contest 2020, which was planned to be held in Rotterdam, Netherlands, but was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.