Thomas Anders

Thomas Anders: pop singer, presenter and songwriter

Thomas Anders was born Bernd Weidung on March 1, 1963 in Mörz, Rhineland-Palatinate and is a German pop singer. pop– and pop singermusic producer, songwriter and television presenter. As a member of the duo Modern Talking with Dieter Bohlen he is one of the most commercially successful German singers with 125 million records sold.

Career of Thomas Anders

In the fall of 1984, Thomas Anders started an English-language Eurodisco project with his music producer Dieter Bohlen and founded the duo Modern Talking. Their breakthrough came virtually overnight with the hit “You’re My Heart, You’re My Soul” in January 1985. Anders also became famous for his eye-catching gold chain with the word “NORA” on it, which symbolized his bond with his wife at the time, Nora Balling.

After the temporary dissolution of Modern Talking in 1987, Anders briefly retired to the USA. However, he returned to Germany, where he continued his career as a solo artist and actor. Modern Talking celebrated a comeback in 1998 and was able to build on its earlier successes. Anders remained musically active, working on various projects and touring regularly.

Anders released the album This Time and three singles in 2004. However, these were unable to match the success of Modern Talking. The first single Independent Girl reached the top 20 in Germany, while in Russia it reached number five. In Turkey, Anders reached number two in the charts with his second single King of Love. In the same year, Anders also produced the single Just Dream for a Holiday on Ice show. The song reached number 64 in the charts in Germany.

In spring 2005, Anders lost against Bohlen in court. His claim for damages in the amount of one million euros was rejected, as disputed passages were contained in Bohlen’s book. On March 21, 2005, an appeal was lodged with the Court of Appeal. The appeal ended on October 28, 2005 with a settlement between the parties for 60,000 euros. Anders donated the sum to various charitable organizations.

In 2003, Stefan Raab appointed him to the jury of SSDSGPS (Stefan sucht den Super Grand Prix Star), a counter-event to Deutschland sucht den Superstar. Anders hosted the national show for the Eurovision Song Contest and announced Germany’s points.

From March 28, 2004, he hosted the seven-part program ‘Best of Formel Eins – Die Show’ on Kabel Eins, which was based on the ARD music video program Formel Eins. He also hosted the music show ‘Auf nach Berlin’ – WM-KultTour in the run-up to the 2006 World Cup.

In March 2006, Anders took part in the German preliminary round of the Eurovision Song Contest 2006. For the following album Songs Forever, Anders selected several hits from the 1980s and, together with producers Achim Brochhausen and Peter Ries, gave these songs a new musical guise in a jazz/swing/lounge style. The Babelsberg Film Orchestra and the Warsaw Symphony Orchestra were involved. The record reached number 46 in the German charts. In the same year, he was awarded the title of “Honorary Professor of the Kiev Nationae University of Art and Culture”. The reason given was that Modern Talking had shaped the musical taste of an entire generation.

In July 2008, Anders released the two songs Ibiza, Baba Baya and For You as a download together with the Berlin producer team Sound-Chateau. These are again in the pop/house genre. The Christmas song Kisses for Christmas followed in November 2008. He worked with Brochhausen again on this song. In spring 2009, he released a duet with the German pop singer Sandra, which made it into the German singles charts. In May, he took over the moderation of the Eurovision Song Contest Countdown from Thomas Hermanns. Together with Aleksandra Bechtel, he hosted the first broadcast of Die neue Hitparade on RTL II in 2010.

In spring 2010, a new pop album entitled Strong was released in Russia. It sold over 500,000 copies and climbed to number 2 in the Russian charts. Anders worked with Russian producer Sergey Revtov on the album. Two videos were made for the singles “Why Do You Cry” and “Stay With Me”, which were directed by video clip director Pavel Hoodyiakov. In November 2012, Anders released an English-language Christmas album entitled “Christmas For You”. It contains well-known classic American Christmas songs as well as some personal favorites. Brochhausen, with whom Anders collaborated again, wrote some new songs and was responsible for the arrangement.

In May 2011, Anders announced that he was collaborating with songwriter and producer Uwe Fahrenkrog-Petersen as the duo Anders | Fahrenkrog. Their first single Gigolo was also released in May 2011 and entered the German singles charts at number 40. The album Two was released in June and reached number 11 in the German album charts. No More Tears On The Dancefloor was released as the second single. Anders wrote about his experiences in his book, which was published in September 2011.

In 2016, he released the album “History”, which contains new interpretations of earlier Modern Talking titles and two newly written songs. Thomas was also a guest on the 12th season of the 105th episode of “Inas Nacht” in 2016, hosted by Ina Müller. The show was broadcast in Hamburg’s oldest sailor’s pub “Zum Schellfischposten” was recorded.

In April 2017, he released his first exclusively German-language album entitled Pures Leben, which entered the charts at number 14. The singles ‘Der beste Tag meines Lebens’ and ‘Sternenregen’ reached number 1 in the conservative pop radio charts.

The first single ‘Das Leben ist jetzt’ from his second German-language album ‘Ewig mit Dir’, which was released in October 2018 and entered the charts at number 12, was a different story. The single once again reached number 1 on radio stations, making it his third conservative pop number one since 2017. The single has so far reached number 6 in the German DJ Playlist charts.

In October 2018, Anders released a duet with Florian Silbereisen entitled “Sie sagte doch sie liebt mich”. This was followed in 2019 by another duet with Silbereisen called ‘Sie hat es wieder getan’. Since 2019, Anders has hosted the series ‘Du ahnst es nicht!’ on ZDF, which deals with the topic of genealogy. Since March 2020, he has hosted the cooking show ‘Koch mal Anders’ on SWR television.

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Two great colleagues and friends, Florian Silbereisen and Thomas, come together with a joint production. The crazy story ‘Sie sagte doch sie liebt mich’ (She said she loved me) tells a story straight out of life. This project gives rise to the idea of continuing the story. Together with the next single ‘Sie hat es wieder getan’, this is the prelude to a joint album by Florian and Thomas. Due to the pandemic, “Das Album” is not released in March 2020 as planned, but in June. It also establishes a close collaboration with Germany’s most successful entertainer.

The absolute enthusiasm of the fans is demonstrated by 26 sold-out halls at the Germany-wide Schlagerfest by Florian Silbereisen in spring 2020. Thomas Anders’ participation in these shows proves that this was absolutely the right decision. The star is now one step closer to his German fans. What he has wanted for many years is finally happening. Music connects and gives life.

With their first joint album “Das Album”, the two artists immediately hit number 1 in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The album, which also featured the pre-released hit singles “Sie sagte doch sie liebt mich” (2018) and “Sie hat es wieder getan” (2019), topped the German and Austrian charts for two weeks. It then remained in the official German album charts for a whole year. It finally went platinum in Germany and also went gold in Austria.

After his successful duet album with Florian Silbereisen, Thomas Anders is once again devoting himself to a solo project and fulfilling the long-awaited wish of his international fanbase with his album “Cosmic” in spring 2021 – finally an album in English again. The song “Cosmic Rider” sounds exactly like a song needs to sound to make the hearts of die-hard fans beat faster: On the one hand, 100% classic Modern Talking sound, but consistently thought ahead and transported into the present day. The track was once again produced by producer Christian Geller, who was also responsible for the duet album with Florian Silbereisen.

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Much has been written and said about Thomas Anders in his career, which continues to this day. Now, in 2022, he is turning the tables and using a medium that has become fashionable: the podcast. Now he talks about successes and failures, highs and lows. Presenter Andreas Kunze takes him on a journey through time, unvarnished and open, completely private, from his home, in which he also looks back on the stories of his eventful life with a wink.

The guests are friends, people close to his heart and companions who have accompanied him along the way. The man who hosts it has remained approachable and down-to-earth. The podcast is sometimes humorous, sometimes serious, but always easy to understand. The podcast is exceptional because it is honest, authentic and simply different.

Thomas Anders celebrates his 60th birthday in 2023 and releases the song ‘The Journey of Life’ for his fans worldwide on all streaming portals. The song in the Modern Talking sound describes the life of the internationally successful artist, who can now look back on a 45-year career. As has been the case for many years, Christian Geller is responsible for the music and production. The matching video for this title was shot in his brand new Studio61. Thomas Anders’ musical journey enters the next round with ‘The Journey of Life’ and into the new decade of his life.

The collaboration with the St. Antony winery will of course continue. The new vintage of Thomas Anders Pinot Gris is now complemented by a rosé.

In the fourth season of the ProSieben show ‘The Masked Singer’, he took fourth place out of ten as a turtle. Anders did not take part in his planned tour of Russia in 2022 due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In April 2022, Thomas was a guest judge in the first live show of “DSDS – Germany is looking for the superstar” next to, Ilse DeLangeFlorian Silbereisen and Sarah Engels and Joachim Llambi (3rd/4th live show).

In autumn 2023, his new cookbook “Meine Lieblingsrezepte #schmecktanders” will be published by TRE TORRI Verlag. Cooking is still one of his passions and provides him with enjoyment as well as relaxation from the challenges of everyday life. In 2024, St. Antony and Thomas Anders will present another joint creation for friends of sparkling enjoyment: a rosé sparkling wine that stylishly complements the artist’s repertoire in this area. There will also be a cooperation with the Koblenz-based spice producer Hartkorn. An exclusive product line under the “Anders Würzen” label is being developed and will perfectly complement the world of enjoyment that Thomas Anders has now created. The collaboration with the family business is a “match made in heaven”.

On February 24, 2024, Thomas Anders will be a guest on “Giovanni Zarrella presents: 50 years of Roland Kaiser” hosted by Giovanni Zarrella on ZDF. Together with numerous celebrity guests such as Kerstin Ott and Beatrice Egli the singer performs at prime time. The show is hosted by Giovanni Zarrella in honor of Roland Kaiser’s 50th stage anniversary. Thomas Anders creates a party atmosphere with the Modern Talking classic “Cheri Cheri Lady”.

Private life of Thomas Anders

Bernd Weidung grew up in Mörz, now a district of Münstermaifeld. He already showed a great interest in music at elementary school and later received piano lessons. He received his first engagement after beating more than 100 applicants in a competition for young talent. He performed over 300 children’s songs and hits at the Moseltanzpalast. He attended the Kurfürst-Balduin-Gymnasium and later the Eichendorff-Gymnasium in Koblenz.

After divorcing his first wife Nora Balling in 1999, Thomas Anders married his current wife Claudia Hess a year later. The two met in 1996, and from 1998 Hess worked for Anders in his music publishing company. Their son Alexander was born in 2002. However, according to the German Press Agency, Alexander Mick has no intention of following in his father’s footsteps in the music industry. Instead, he is aiming for a career in the real estate industry.

Studio albums Thomas Anders

• 1989 Different
• 1991 Whispers
• 1992 Down on Sunset
• 1993 When Will I See You Again
• 1994 Barcos de Cristal
• 1995 Souled
• 2004 This Time
• 2006 Songs Forever
• 2010 Strong
• 2011 Two
• 2012 Christmas for You
• 2016 History
• 2017 Pure life
• 2018 Forever with you
• 2020 The album
• 2021 Cosmic