Matthias Reim (born 26 November 1957) is a German pop and Schlager singer. His 1990 single "Verdammt, ich lieb' dich" ("Damn, I love you") was a hit in several European countries and spent 16 consecutive weeks at the number 1 spot in the German charts. He unexpectedly returned 23 years later to the top on the charts with "Unendlich" in 2013.
Early life
Reim was born on 26 November 1957 in Korbach and grew up in Homberg. His father was the director of the gymnasium in Homberg. After receiving his Abitur, he began his undergraduate studies in the German and English languages as well as Germanistic and Anglistic literatures in Göttingen. This took 18 terms – this is above average, as he spent time predominantly in the music studio and not in the lecture-room.
Career
1980–1989: Fallen Dice and Fair Fax
Reim's career began as a songwriter, writing for Bernhard Brink, Roberto Blanco and Tina York. He played in a rock band called Fallen Dice with Pete Goldenberg and Norbert Preis. Their debut album, Pasch 1, was released in 1981. He spent a brief time as lead singer of the band Aqua before their dissolution in 1984. In 1986, Reim formed the synthpop duo Fair Fax with Jörg Wiesner. They released one single, "Satellite Dream", through Hansa Records.
1990–1999: Solo career
Reim's debut single "Verdammt, ich lieb' dich" ("Damn, I love you") topped the German Singles Chart for sixteen consecutive weeks in 1990. It also reached no. 1 in Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands and Switzerland. His debut album, Reim, was released through Polydor on 15 June 1990. He released a further nine albums through Polydor, including 1994's Zauberland which was re-recorded in English the following year.
2000–2015: The Electrola years
Reim began to see increased commercial success again in the 2000s after signing with Electrola.
In September 2004, Reim released the single "Vergiß Es (Forget It)" with Bonnie Tyler. It featured on Reim's compilation album, Déjà Vu, and reached no. 64 on the German Singles Chart. They recorded a second duet on Reim's thirteenth album, Sieben Leben (2010).
In 2011, Reim released a Christmas album titled Die große Weihnachtsparty, which includes a German cover of "Last Christmas" by Wham!.
In 2013, Reim topped the German Albums Chart for a second time with Unendlich.
2016–present: Recent work
Reim moved to RCA Records in 2016 for the release of his sixteenth album, Phoenix, which peaked at no. 2 in Germany. His subsequent albums Meteor (2018), MR20 (2019) and Matthias (2022) all peaked within the top 3.
In 2022, Reim wrote the song "Bastian [Blaulicht in der Nacht]" in memory of his son Bastian, who died in October 2022 at the age of 35.[1][2] Reim also sang the song "Vater und Sohn" in duet with his son Julian (born 1996), a German adaptation of Cat Stevens' song Father and Son.[3][4]
Discography
Albums
| Year | Details | Peak chart position | Certifications (sales thresholds) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GER [5] |
AUT [6] |
SWI [7] |
NL [8] | |||
| 1990 | Reim
|
1 | 1 | 1 | 30 | |
| 1991 | Reim 2
|
5 | 6 | 8 | — | |
| 1993 | Sabotage
|
11 | — | 15 | — | |
| 1994 | Zauberland
|
26 | — | 47 | — | |
| 1995 | Alles klar
|
— | — | — | — | |
| 1997 | Reim 3
|
40 | — | — | — | |
| 1998 | Sensationell
|
51 | — | — | — | |
| 2000 | Wolkenreiter
|
33 | — | — | — | |
| 2002 | Morgenrot
|
16 | 52 | 74 | — | |
| 2003 | Reim
|
4 | 19 | 44 | — |
|
| 2005 | Unverwundbar
|
7 | 32 | — | — |
|
| 2007 | Männer sind Krieger
|
10 | 38 | — | — | |
| 2010 | Sieben Leben
|
5 | 17 | 56 | — |
|
| 2013 | Unendlich
|
1 | 9 | 28 | — |
|
| 2014 | Die Leichtigkeit des Seins
|
2 | 11 | 34 | — |
|
| 2016 | Phoenix
|
2 | 10 | 16 | — |
|
| 2018 | Meteor
|
3 | 12 | 19 | — | |
| 2019 | MR20
|
3 | 15 | 22 | — |
|
| 2022 | Matthias
|
2 | 5 | 6 | — | |
| 2024 | Zeppelin
|
4 | 5 | 11 | — | |
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||
Personal life
Reim has been married four times and has seven children from six different mothers. In 1973, at the age of 15-16, he fathered a daughter, Claudia, of whose existence he only learned in 2015.[1]
Reim married his first wife, Miriam in 1985. They had a son, Bastian, born 1987, who died in 2022 at age 35; and divorced in 1992.[12][1] After his divorce, Reim married Margot Scheuermeyer, a stylist and background singer, whom he had met in 1990, they were married for 8 years.[13] They had a son, Julian, born in 1996, who became a Schlager singer.[1]
Between 1999 and 2001, Reim lived together with Michelle. They had a daughter, Marie, born in 2000, also a Schlager singer.
In 2004, Reim married Sarah Stanek, 20 years his junior. They had a son Romeo (born 2004) and a daughter Romy (born 2008) together, before divorcing in 2013. In 2020, Reim married Christin Stark, a Schlager singer and moderator 32 years his junior, they had been living together since 2012. Their daughter Zoe was born in 2022.[14][1]
Until April 2012, Reim lived on Mallorca, since then he has been living in the Lake Constance area, first in Radolfzell.[15][16] After the end of his third marriage, he and Christin Stark lived together in Bodman-Ludwigshafen[17], following their marriage, they moved to Stockach.[18]
References
- ^ a b c d e "Matthias Reim: 7 Kinder von 6 Frauen - Seine große Familie im Überblick!". intouch.wunderweib.de (in German). 14 November 2024. Retrieved 7 February 2025.
- ^ "Bild-Zeitung: Matthias Reims Sohn Bastian vor zwei Jahren gestorben | MDR.DE". Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk (in German). Retrieved 7 February 2025.
- ^ Stegmann, Eva Marie (10 November 2022). "Matthias Reim: Auf neuem XXL-Album singt er mit der ganzen Familie – und für Tannheim". SÜDKURIER Online (in German). Retrieved 7 February 2025.
- ^ Stegmann, Eva Marie (21 November 2022). "Julian Reim: Mehr als der Sohn von Matthias Reim". SÜDKURIER Online (in German). Retrieved 7 February 2025.
- ^ "Matthias Reim" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Archived from the original on 1 June 2022. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
- ^ "Discographie Matthias Reim". austriancharts.at (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
- ^ "Discography Matthias Reim" (Switch to the "Charts" tab). swisscharts.com (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
- ^ "Matthias Reim". dutchcharts.nl (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Matthias Reim)" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
- ^ a b "Austrian album certifications – Matthias Reim" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
- ^ a b "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Matthias Reim)". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
- ^ "Matthias Reim: Vor zwei Jahren verlor er Sohn Bastian". bild.de (in German). 6 June 2024. Retrieved 17 March 2025.
- ^ "Matthias Reim: 80 Freundinnen! Die lange Liste seiner Geliebten". intouch.wunderweib.de (in German). 7 April 2022. Retrieved 17 March 2025.
- ^ "Matthias Reim: Baby Nummer sieben für den Schlagersänger". Der Spiegel (in German). 1 April 2022. ISSN 2195-1349. Retrieved 17 March 2025.
- ^ Paetz, Vivienne (25 May 2012). "Matthias Reim: Ein Schlagerstar ganz ohne Allüren". SÜDKURIER Online (in German). Retrieved 17 March 2025.
- ^ "ARD Mediathek - Sendung verpasst - Programm heute". www.ardmediathek.de (in German). Retrieved 17 March 2025.
- ^ Westphal, Nicola M. (18 April 2016). "Matthias Reim nach seiner schweren Erkrankung: „Ich bin wieder topfit"". SÜDKURIER Online (in German). Retrieved 17 March 2025.
- ^ dpa, Frederick Mersi (14 January 2022). "Sein neues Album ist fertig: Warum Schlagerstar Matthias Reim vom Stockacher Winterhimmel genug hat". SÜDKURIER Online (in German). Retrieved 17 March 2025.
External links
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| People | |
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