Andrea Neuenhofen (née Rosenbaum; born 25 December 1969), better known by her stage name AnNa R., is a German singer and songwriter who provides the lead vocals for pop group Gleis 8. She was previously the main vocalist of

Rosenstolz Rosenstolz () was a German pop duo from Berlin that was active between 1991 and 2012 and had chart hits in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The duo consisted of singer AnNa R. and musician Peter Plate, who occasionally provided vocals. R ...

, a pop duo that was active between 1991 and 2012 and had chart hits in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

Early life

AnNa R. was born Andrea RosenbaumTackenberg, Marcus
"Vorname ist Wikipedia-Erfindung - Ex-Rosenstolz-Sängerin heißt nicht Natalie"
(in German). ''Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung''. 5 July 2013. on 25 December 1969"laut.de-Biographie - Rosenstolz"
(in German). ''laut.de''. Retrieved 18 January 2014. in

Berlin-Friedrichshain Friedrichshain () is a quarter (''Ortsteil'') of the borough of Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg in Berlin, Germany. From its creation in 1920 until 2001, it was a freestanding city borough. Formerly part of East Berlin, it is adjacent to Mitte, Prenzl ...

and grew up in the former

East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

.Rosenstolz (1997). ''Lieb mich, wenn du kannst, nimm mich, nimm mich ganz'' (3rd ed., July 1998) (in German). Munich, Germany: dtv. . She sang in a choir during her youth. After she had finished her secondary education, she auditioned for a place at Musikschule Friedrichshain (Friedrichshain music school), but was not accepted. Consequently, she took up private singing lessons. She also trained as a laboratory assistant after finishing her secondary education, but soon changed career to become a sheet music salesperson.

Career

1991–2012: Rosenstolz

Looking for a pianist to help her to realize her aim of becoming a bar singer, AnNa R. was introduced by a friend to

Peter Plate Peter Plate (born 1 July 1967) is a German musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. Between 1991 and 2012, he was the keyboardist and occasional vocalist of Rosenstolz, a German pop duo that had chart hits in Germany, Austria and Switzer ...

, a keyboard player who had just moved to Berlin and needed a singer. Although they had different musical aspirations, with AnNa R. preferring to sing

chanson A (, , french: chanson française, link=no, ; ) is generally any lyric-driven French song, though it most often refers to the secular polyphonic French songs of late medieval and Renaissance music. The genre had origins in the monophonic s ...

and Plate wanting to make English-language pop music, the pair got together to write songs, performing them as pop duo Rosenstolz. Although their early records were not commercially successful, AnNa R. and Plate achieved increasing success over Rosenstolz's two-decade history, eventually having charts hits not only in their native Germany but also in Austria and Switzerland. These included five No. 1 studio albums in Germany. During their Rosenstolz career, AnNa R. and Plate undertook various initiatives to raise money for

AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...

charities, and both were awarded the ''Bundesverdienstkreuz'' (

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, or , BVO) is the only federal decoration of Germany. It is awarded for special achievements in political, economic, cultural, intellect ...

) in 2011 in recognition of their efforts. In 2012, the duo decided to split up. AnNa R. stated that both she and Plate wanted to take a break from each other and try something new.Opitz, Anja
""Wir sind nicht Anna R. und, sondern eine Band""
(in German). ''AMPYA''. 24 May 2013. AnNa R. was the main vocalist of Rosenstolz and also contributed to writing the lyrics of the band's songs with Plate and Ulf Leo Sommer. Towards the end of Rosenstolz, AnNa R. felt that she was not contributing as much to songwriting as she had done earlier in the band's history.

2012–present: Gleis 8

In January 2012, AnNa R. started working with musicians Lorenz Allacher, Timo Dorsch and Manne Uhlig.Kampe, Sina

(in German). ''Berliner Kurier''. 12 May 2013. The following year, they officially announced their formation as the band Gleis 8. Their debut album ''Bleibt das immer so'', which was released in May 2013, reached No. 7 in the German albums chart. AnNa R. writes the band's songs in cooperation with her band colleagues. She has described the band as being democratic, with all the members being of equal standing.Lohr, Matthias

(in German). ''HNA.DE''. 23 May 2013.

Personal life

AnNa R. married Nilo Neuenhofen in 2002.
(in German). ''B.Z.'' 18 March 2004. Her activities in her spare time include cooking and boxing."Sängerin AnNa R. über Rosenstolz und Gleis 8"
(in German). ''Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung''. 6 July 2013.

Discography

Studio albums (Rosenstolz) * ''

Soubrette werd' ich nie ''Soubrette werd' ich nie'' (I'll never become a soubrette) is the debut album by German pop duo Rosenstolz, released in 1992 by Pool. The album was not a commercial success following its initial release. However, the 2007 re-release reached No.& ...

'' (1992) * ''Nur einmal noch'' (1994) * ''Mittwoch is' er fällig'' (1995) * ''Objekt der Begierde'' (1996) * ''

Die Schlampen sind müde ''Die Schlampen sind müde'' (The tarts are tired) is the fifth studio album by German pop duo Rosenstolz. Released in 1997 by Polydor Records, it was the first Rosenstolz album to enter the German albums chart. Background ''Die Schlampen sind m ...

'' (1997) * '' Zucker'' (1999) * ''

Kassengift ''Kassengift'' (Box-office poison) is the seventh studio album by German pop duo Rosenstolz, released in 2000 by Polydor Records. The album was the first Rosenstolz album to reach No. 1 in the German albums chart and includes "Amo Vitam", a ...

'' (2000) * ''

Macht Liebe ''Macht Liebe'' (meaning either "Power – love" or "Make love") is the eighth studio album by German pop duo Rosenstolz, released in 2002 by Polydor Records. Featuring a mix of electropop and ballads, the album reached gold status in Germany ...

'' (2002) * ''

Herz Herz is the German word for ''heart''. It may refer to: * Herz (surname) * Herz Bergner (1907–1970), Polish-born Australian novelist * Herz Cerfbeer of Medelsheim (1730–1793), French Jewish philanthropist * Herz., author abbreviation of Germa ...

'' (2004) * ''

Das große Leben ''Das große Leben'' (The great life) is the tenth studio album by German pop duo Rosenstolz, released in 2006 by Island Records. Consisting mostly of ballads, the album topped the German and Austrian albums charts and became Rosenstolz's biggest ...

'' (2006) * ''

Die Suche geht weiter ''Die Suche geht weiter'' (The search goes on) is the eleventh studio album by German pop duo Rosenstolz. Released in 2008 by Island Records, the album reached No. 1 in the German and Austrian albums charts and No. 2 in the Swiss album ...

'' (2008) * ''

Wir sind am Leben ''Wir sind am Leben'' (We are alive) is the twelfth and final studio album by German pop duo Rosenstolz. Released in 2011 by Island Records, the album reached No. 1 in the German and Austrian albums charts and No. 3 in the Swiss albums ...

'' (2011) Studio albums (Gleis 8) * ''Bleibt das immer so'' (2013) * ''Endlich'' (2016)

References

External links

* * at

Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...

website {{DEFAULTSORT:AnNa R. 1969 births German women singer-songwriters German singer-songwriters HIV/AIDS activists Living people Singers from Berlin R., AnNa Recipients of the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany 20th-century German women singers 21st-century German women singers