Roland Kaiser: “I wish this anti-Semitism would stop”

It was the big day of the world premiere of the film "50 Years of Roland Kaiser - A Life for Music" at Münster's Cineplex cinema. Roland Kaiser (73) didn't show any signs of excitement in the video interview. And he doesn't really like being called a "movie star" either.

At least, despite all his modesty, the Berlin native who now lives in Münster is the only one of the greats of German pop music history—Helene Fischer only came along in the 2000s—who today even fills football stadiums with his fans. Where he's accompanied on stage not by a band, but by a 16-piece pop orchestra.

Roland Kaiser was celebrated by 1,500 guests in the sold-out cinema in Münster on Thursday evening (October 16).

Mr. Kaiser, congratulations on the live album and the movie. When you see a stadium packed with 44,000 people in the movie, flashing lights at night as if the starry sky had tilted onto the earth, it's enchanting. What more could come?

(laughs) Thank you. Yes, today has already been an impressive day for me. And what's to come – all the good things you encounter, you naturally try to repeat. And who knows, maybe I'll even go on another stadium tour.

What you see in the film was significantly bigger than your annual "Kaisermania" concerts on the banks of the Elbe in Dresden. Did you feel uneasy at first?

There were four concerts with 12,500 people; here it was one with 44,000. I approached it the way I always approach things: without worry or anxiety, full of anticipation – because I have truly fantastic musicians around me. We had played concerts before and knew it would be good musically and in terms of the staging. It was a beautiful, successful day – we were lucky with the weather, which isn't something to be taken for granted. And the crowd was in a good mood.

And what is it like to be the star of a movie?

(smiles) Don't make such a big deal out of it. We're here—including me—17 people on stage. We made music together. And the fact that it's now being shown in cinemas is, of course, wonderful.

Twenty-five years ago, you told me in a conversation, "Schlager is dead." Were you wrong? Schlager is alive and filling football stadiums.

No, I wasn't mistaken. If you talk to market experts, they'll tell you that the market share of Schlager in Germany is now at two and a half percent of the entire music market. You can't really call that a lively market. The charts predominantly feature products from America and other countries. And in Germany, you see a lot of rap, as well as rock and pop, but the share of Schlager is declining significantly.

Perhaps the success of your concerts in particular is due to the live performance: There's a horn section whose funky riffs are reminiscent of the Commodores, Tina Tandler plays a soulful saxophone, and guitarist Jörg Weißelberg lets his guitar strum like Dick Dale on the surf classic "Misirlou." Sounds like you're a rock 'n' roller at heart.

I'm an entertainer at heart. We always aim to entertain people well, and to do so at the highest possible level. I think it's right and legitimate for us to take influences from other styles. That's how we sound contemporary.

A huge ensemble.

We've been playing in this configuration for two years now—with wind instruments and strings. Many American artists are becoming more minimalist these days: The band is no longer shown, but is relegated to a backstage location, and only the stars are visible. The only thing that occurs to me is: Why don't you just use a playback machine? I think that when both of these things come together—hearing and seeing music live—it's an experience for the audience. Handmade music is still the most beautiful thing there is.

Although in the past, Schlager always had the reputation of being played back in full.

If you're at a disco, you'll still be confronted with full playback of Schlager music. We don't want that at our concerts. And that's not an exception: Andrea Berg also plays live, and so does Helene Fischer.

As you can see from the Red Bull Arena, it's not just the old fans who are enthusiastic. How did you mobilize the young ones, who apparently still know every line of the lyrics?

(laughs quietly) Good question. I think it's important to keep up with the times without getting lost in them. I always strive to make my productions sound as contemporary as possible. We base our sound primarily on American artists. That's the benchmark. I work a lot with sound mixer Michael Ilbert, who, for example, made Coldplay's last album, "Moon Music." And then it sounds the way it should sound today. That takes a lot of time and material. But people appreciate it.

There is also supposedly a nostalgia among young people of Generation Z for things and works of art from the pre-digital age, including music that came before them.

That's quite possible. When I was young and started listening to music, I came across artists who had been around for a long time. And some of them have stayed with me throughout my life – Frank Sinatra, for example, and Dean Martin. They became constants. And that could also play a role for my audience: "My mom liked him, my grandma even did, and he still makes music that's good to listen to."

Today, on the day of your film's world premiere, the death of legendary pop composer and producer Jack White, whose career began in the 1960s, has been announced. How did you react to the news?

Jack White and I worked together. And I respected this very successful man. The last two or three weeks have been full of news about his separation from his wife. That he is now dying so alone has made me very sad.

What do you remember most?

Well, we worked together. But it wasn't like we were close friends.

Does such news make one aware of one’s own mortality?

I am aware of that, even without his death.

On your latest album, “Marathon,” released in February of this year, some of your songs definitely revolve around this topic.

I'm not thinking about my own death at the moment. I'm aware that it will happen at some point. But the thought of it doesn't make me sad.

In the song “What will become of you” one can sense the regret of a loving father that one day he will no longer be the companion of his children.

Everyone would like to know what will become of their children. With my own children, I know they're on their way. They've become wonderful people. What I would have liked to see, or would like to see, is the lives of my grandchildren. That's a long way off, though. But I'll look forward with optimism.

In 2000, you told me that the album "Mitten im Leben" (Mitten in Life) marked a final line for you, because "you can't sing about love forever." You still sing about love.

You have to be allowed to learn in old age. That statement was a bit premature back then, I think (laughs). You can also sing about love retrospectively when you're older, remembering your first love at 17 or 18. It's difficult to sing credibly about falling in love for the first time in your mid-70s. But if you do it sensibly, in a mature way, love songs always work.

As brand-new songs like "Mein Geheimnis" (My Secret) and "Auf den Dächern der Welt" (On the Roofs of the World) demonstrate, it's still as—let's say—physical as it was in 1982's "Manchmal möchte ich schon mit dir" (Sometimes I'd Like to Be with You). Or as her duet partner Barbara Schöneberger put it in her podcast "Mit den Waffeln einer Frau" (With the Waffles of a Woman): "It's all about fucking the whole time."

(laughs) Yes, yes, my dear friend gets straight to the point. The charm of a relationship doesn't end with holding hands and going for walks. Lovers want more. I reflect that in my songs.

Much more elegant than when Katja Krasavice sings: “I have thick lips and they blow.”

That's a phrase I would never use to describe eroticism.

Wouldn't work either.

Wouldn't suit me either.

And yet, you too seem to be seeking a certain heightening. The song "You, Your Girlfriend and I" tells of a libidinous triad.

(laughs) When I first heard the song, I expected this provocation to cause a stir. But a positive stir. And so it did – Sebastian Pufpaff immediately included the song on his show. At his concerts, the song brings particular joy to people.

Maybe it fuels their imagination.

Maybe. Only the critics are nervous about the topic.

They sing incessantly about sex and infidelity, but assure you that they will always be faithful to their wives. The "I" in their songs is someone other than you.

I'm not the main character in my songs. If I had experienced everything I wrote, I would have to be 200 years old.

Your sociopolitical songs are less well known. The new one, "Achtung & Respekt," is a song against "hate and incitement." How do you feel about the current situation in Germany, given the growing xenophobia and anti-Semitism?

I still feel good about this country. I want changes, improvements. Most of all, I want this anti-Semitism to end. That we remember Theodor Heuss, the first German President, who said in 1949 that there is no collective guilt, but there is collective shame. We should all carry this within us when we encounter our Jewish fellow citizens. We should honor and respect them. And not make the mistake of equating Israeli policy with that of our neighbors.

What else do you wish for?

A more respectful approach to one another overall. When I read and hear about emergency workers, firefighters, emergency room doctors, and police officers being attacked, I begin to doubt humanity. It's terrible.

Your two grandchildren could actually grow up in a completely different, much less free world than the one we experienced.

What makes me sad most of all is that this incredibly long period of peace in Europe seems to be coming to an end. Yes, I'm already worried about my grandchildren.

And yet, in "Achtung & Respekt," you're confident: "Hate and incitement have no chance." Do you believe that?

Yes. I'm an optimistic person. What's important is that we talk about it now, that it's written, that it's read, and then people talk about it. I believe we'll turn things around.

current studio album: Roland Kaiser - “Marathon” (Ariola)

New live album: Roland Kaiser - "50 Years. All the Hits. Live" (Ariola)

Roland Kaiser Open Air Tour 2026: June 12th, 2026: Frankfurt (Oder), Stadion der Freundschaft ; June 13th, 2026: Fulda, Domplatz ; June 19th, 2026: St. Goarshausen, Loreley Open Air Stage ; June 20th, 2026: Kassel, Friedrichsplatz ; June 21st, 2026: Aurich, Tannenhausen Multi-Purpose Area ; June 26th, 2026: Coburg, Coburg Castle Square ; June 27th, 2026: Halle (Saale), Peißnitzinsel Open Air Stage ; June 28th, 2026: Halle (Saale), Peißnitzinsel Open Air Stage ; July 3rd, 2026: Erfurt, Domplatz ; July 4th, 2026: Rostock, IGA Parkbühne Rostock ; July 11, 2026: Aspach, WIRmachenDRUCK Arena ; July 12, 2026: Friedberg (Hesse), Seewiese ; July 18, 2026: Schwarzenberg, Waldbühne Schwarzenberg ; July 19, 2026: Ulm, Münsterplatz; July 24, 2026 : Salem, Salem Castle ; July 25, 2026: Tüßling, Castle Park; August 14, 2026: Hanover, Expo site ; August 15, 2026: Bonn, Kunst!Rasen ; August 16, 2026: Osnabrück, Castle Garden ; August 21 & 22, 2026: Berlin, Waldbühne Berlin.