In September of 2002, cosmic earth mother and quintessential European punk opera diva Nina Hagen made her triumphant return to the New York stage, her first appearance there in four years, following a series of West Coast dates. Hagen was joined by queer rockers The Toilet Boys and special guests ARI-UP (of The Slits) and Theo (of The Lunachicks). Hagen's return to Chicago is also her first in many years.
While Nina's Web site www.nina-hagen.com is the perfect place to catch up on what is happening in her life and stay abreast of her many projects, I had the chance to speak with Nina herself.
Gregg Shapiro: I understand that you have co-authored a book titled That's Why The Lady Is A Punk.
Nina Hagen: (laughs) Yeah! It's a big, fat, huge book, very big format like a (coffee) table book, with stories that even I have not even known before, like how my mother met my father, and very interesting stories about my upbringing in East Germany.
GS: So it's autobiographical?
NH: It is very autobiographical, but on top of everything it is all my friends, my colleagues, people who walked part of the way with me, they are all being interviewed in the book and they all speak about me and how they experienced me and things like that. Loads and loads of pictures.
GS: A multitude of voices singing your praises.
NH: Yeah, but not only praises. They just speak normal (laughs). It's a not a Bible or anything like that. It will show me as a human being and as an artist. It will show all my aspects as a fellow creature (laughs).
GS: It's been more than a year since the 9/11 attacks on America that had such a devastating impact on New York.
NH: And the whole world.
GS: Absolutely. What does your song 'New York, New York,' which celebrated that city in the 1980s mean to you today?
NH: I had to change one line, because there is this one line, 'New York City has the fanciest rule/when you want to live in this town you just have to be a fool.' I didn't mean it, back in the '80s, as a bad thing, I just meant all the funny and life-hungry artistic people. I changed it and now I say, 'New York City has the fanciest rule/when you want to live in this town you just have to be so cool.' I don't want to have any misunderstandings with my love and affection for New York and for my friends in New York. I was devastated by this. I was in the airplane that day myself, Sept. 11, flying from Berlin to Ibiza in Spain. Arriving there, everybody had white faces and (they were) looking at me. I thought they were making an ugly joke and then we were glued to a TV. It's changed everything in the world.
GS: Your 1999 Internet-only album Om Namah Shivay contains your interpretations of traditional Indian spiritual songs.
NH: All the songs I've learned at the foothills of the Himalayas on my many visits to India. Since 1993 I met my teacher from India who was on tour in Europe, Sri Munirajy. He is toward the end of his 70s now, he's a very, very peaceful saint. I was part of raising money for this charitable hospital and I made a documentary about my experiences with my teacher and in the yoga center, meeting so many people from all over the world, from different religious backgrounds, to really have one thing in common, world peace. We don't want to convert each other, no matter who is following which religion. We are learning to love and respect each other no matter what cultural or religious background we might have. That's just the coolest thing I ever experienced, so I had to make a documentary movie about it. My movie was shown at a couple of little film festivals. And also, I'm putting out a new CD with some recordings of some of my best friends who I've met in India, and some are from Italy, some of them are from America, and from France, like an international band. We went on tour with the Om Namah Shivay music, so we are bringing a live album out.
GS: I think it's fascinating that you have found a way to balance this very sacred side of yourself with your other stage persona.
NH: Yeah, but my rock concerts, I consider also spiritual. Of course, they are more rock-cabaret and it includes all sorts of human emotions of true stories. (I have a song) dedicated to my friends from Greenpeace and songs about the ugly side of life, the dark side, like a song about Anita Berber, who was a cabaret icon in the '20s, of the swinging Berlin, before the Nazi invasion. So my rock music is also—I can not say that it is not spiritual either.
GS: You sang on Dee Dee Ramone's album, I Hate Freaks Like You. What did his passing mean to you?
NH: I was devastated because I was hoping he would be around for a long time. I was expecting him to get old with me. But then there was another master plan for him apparently. I believe that a soul is never lost, we (will) always be there where we belong. In the thereafter it's nice too. I'm not afraid. There is eternal life, that's for sure. Maybe he'll came back as a baby, maybe he's already a master and he doesn't have to come back. We'll see about that when I go over and I will look out for him.
GS: Well, please stick around. Don't go yet.
NH: Oh, yes! My son had his twelfth birthday and my daughter is 21. I'm a working mom and I don't want to go, no. I want to stay as long as possible. I enjoy getting old. I'm 47 now and I didn't have any alteration done on my body and I'm happy about that, because I don't believe in plastic surgery. It scares me. It's so scary. I can make a ponytail and lift my skin up.
GS: All you have to do is look at Joan Rivers to know it's a bad thing. In addition to being a performer, you have also gained renown as an activist for various causes, including PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals). What kind of fulfillment do you get from your activism?
NH: Only good reactions. We just made a little demonstration in front of the embassy of mother India in Berlin, because we were stressing the point of the law in India for animal-rights laws. They are doing illegal things there. Seventy-five cows in one wagon when only 35 are allowed, they bring them to illegal slaughterhouses. Many of the greatest of the great international leather companies, they joined the boycott of Indian leather if they don't take care of animal rights. It was a positive demonstration, nothing aggressive, very funny—activists came with big cow heads and we rolled out our banner, and then we met the ambassador and he was very happy to see us and he said that he would give our petition to the Indian government, and that's how it went. (Another time) I was invited by children from 12 states in Germany and they went on a demonstration, from one embassy to another because they want to save the ancient forest. Children in Germany are very concerned about this issue. I love them for this. I love that the young people are bringing us back to that we all have to get involved and stressing the point to our government that we are able to preserve our world, for example, at the next Earth Summit. So, we were walking around from one embassy to another, the children were handing over the petitions. The only embassies that did not greet the children, not even one spokesperson, that was the Russian embassy and the Chinese embassy. All the others were so cool and they took the petition in their hands and said they would stress that point. They thanked us for our work. Also, our environmental minister in Germany was greeting us. I was scared to meet him, because I like him as a person and he invited me to a dinner with Prince Charles and other people on the island in Germany.
GS: You have long been regarded as an icon for the gay community because of your strength and your spirit and forthrightness. What have you gotten from the gay community?
NH: My God, so much inspiration, lovely friendships. The gay community in Berlin, for example, and me, we just have the greatest fun. I'm working with many gay people in professional life. My co-producer for my Internet TV show, which now will turn into a real show—I have meetings with big TV stations in Germany at the end of August. Most of my colleagues are gay people. In a way, I'm gay too—I'm a happy camper. And I say, always say and I feel it from my heart, that it's nobody's business who you fall in love with as long as nobody gets hurt.
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