Felix Martin Andreas Matthias Blume (born 3 August 1984), known professionally as Kollegah, is a German rapper. He releases his music via his own label, Alpha Music Empire. Born in Friedberg and raised by a single mother in

Simmern Simmern (; officially Simmern/Hunsrück) is a town of roughly 7,600 inhabitants (2013) in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, the district seat of the Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis, and the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Simmern-Rheinböllen. In the Rhinelan ...

, he started rapping in the Reimliga Battle Arena in December 2004. Intending to pursue a solo career as a rapper, Kollegah released his first

mixtape A mixtape (alternatively mix-tape, mix tape or mixed tape) is a compilation of music, typically from multiple sources, recorded onto a medium. With origins in the 1980s, the term normally describes a homemade compilation of music onto a cassette ...

''Zuhältertape'' in July 2005 and was signed to ''

Selfmade Records Selfmade Records is a German hip hop music, hip hop label, which was formed 2005 by Elvir Omerbegovic, better known under the pseudonym Slick One, and Philipp Dammann. The studio is located in Düsseldorf. Philipp Dammann left the label at the ...

'' in December of the same year. He went on to pursue a variety of styles on subsequent albums '' Alphagene'' (2007), ''

Kollegah Felix Martin Andreas Matthias Blume (born 3 August 1984), known professionally as Kollegah, is a German rapper. He releases his music via his own label, Alpha Music Empire. Born in Friedberg and raised by a single mother in Simmern, he started ...

'' (2008) and '' Bossaura'' (2011). His fourth studio album, ''

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

'', was released in 2014 and became his best-selling album to date. His fifth album, ''Zuhältertape Vol. 4'', was released in 2015, ''Imperator'' in 2016 and ''

Monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, his ...

'' in 2018. Kollegah also released four collaborative studio albums with German rapper

Farid Bang Farid Hamed El Abdellaoui ( ar, link=no, فريد العبدلاوي, born 4 June 1986), known professionally as Farid Bang, is a German rapper of Moroccan-Spanish descent. He is currently the owner of the label Banger Musik. Early life Fari ...

, the ''Jung brutal gutaussehend'' tetralogy, between 2009 and 2018.

Biography

1984–2005: Early life, ''Reimliga Battle Arena'', ''Zuhältertape'' and ''Alphagene''

Felix Blume was born on 3 August 1984 in

Friedberg, Hesse Friedberg (; official name: ''Friedberg (Hessen)'') is a town and the capital of the Wetteraukreis district, in Hesse, Germany. It is located 26 km (16 miles) north of Frankfurt am Main. In 1966, the town hosted the sixth ''Hessentag'' state festiv ...

to a Canadian father and a German mother. His parents divorced during his childhood. After the divorce, he moved with his mother to

Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...

. He attended the Herzog-Johann-Gymnasium, where he passed his

Abitur ''Abitur'' (), often shortened colloquially to ''Abi'', is a qualification granted at the end of secondary education in Germany. It is conferred on students who pass their final exams at the end of ISCED 3, usually after twelve or thirteen year ...

exam in 2005. Through his Algerian stepfather he converted to

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

. From December 2004 until May 2005 Kollegah participated in rap battles hosted on online platform ''Reimliga Battle Arena'' (RBA) and won 11 out of 14 evaluated battles. Blume released his first Mixtape, the ''Zuhältertape'' (ZHT) for free on 20 July 2005 on his website. The 14-track long project was downloaded – according to Blume – over 5,000 times in one month. The project was re-released in December 2005 through

. In July 2006, Blume published his second Mixtape ''Boss der Bosse'' (ZHT 2). He was criticised for his live performance during the '' Splash!'' in 2006. Blume's first studio album ''Alphagene'' was set to release in September 2007, but was postponed to November, after he was found with

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...

and

amphetamine Amphetamine (contracted from alpha- methylphenethylamine) is a strong central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is used in the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), narcolepsy, and obesity. It is also commonly used ...

Bad Kreuznach Bad Kreuznach () is a town in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is a spa town, most well known for its medieval bridge dating from around 1300, the Alte Nahebrücke, which is one of the few remaining bridges in th ...

. ''Alphagene'' became Kollegahs first project to enter the German charts on 30 November 2007. The album debuted on number 51 and left the charts next week. According to Selfmade Records, the album was sold over 20,000 times.

2008–2010: ''Kollegah'', ''Chronik 2'', ''ZHT 3'', ''Jung, brutal, gutaussehend'' and feud with Aggro Berlin

On 28 August 2008, Blume released his second studio album ''Kollegah'', which peaked at 17 in Germany, 48 in Switzerland and sold over 20,000 copies. On 17 April 2009, ''Chronik 2'' was released, an album featuring the

artists Kollegah, Favorite, Casper and Shiml. The previously released song "Westdeutschlands Kings" performed by Kollegah,

Favorite A favourite (British English) or favorite (American English) was the intimate companion of a ruler or other important person. In post-classical and early-modern Europe, among other times and places, the term was used of individuals delegated si ...

and

, targeted insults at Sido,

Fler Patrick Losenský (born 3 April 1982), known professionally as Fler, is a German rapper and the CEO of Maskulin Music Group. Career 2000–2006: Beginnings Fler was first recognized in the rap scene through collaborations with Bushido. T ...

and

Kitty Kat Katharina Löwel (born 22 January 1982), better known under her stage name Kitty Kat or Kitten Ket, is a German rapper and singer. She became famous as an Aggro Berlin member, where she was signed from 2006 to 2009. Biography Katharina Löwel ...

from

Aggro Berlin Aggro Berlin was a German hip-hop independent record label based in Berlin that existed from 1 January 2001 until 1 April 2009. Three artists ( Sido, Tony D and Kitty Kat) were signed with the label at the time of its closure. Since the end o ...

. In March, a song titled "Früher wart ihr Fans" was released by

, Kitty Kat and

Godsilla Matthias Schulze (born 5 May 1984) better known as Silla (formerly Godsilla) is a German rapper who was previously signed to I Luv Money Records. In 2010, Schulze changed his pseudonym "Godsilla" to "Silla" to avoid a lawsuit by Toho, the owner ...

as a reaction. In the song, they accuse Selfmade Records artists of having created the feud for the sole purpose of marketing their album; Kitty Kat also attacks Favorite by referring to the death of his parents, who died because of a fire while camping. Kollegah responded on 20 March with the song "Fanpost", calling Fler a "fat potato" and claims that he was penetrated with a carrot. Fler responded with the song "Schrei nach Liebe", the chorus of which is heavily based on

Die Ärzte Die Ärzte (; ) is a German rock band from Berlin. The band has released 14 studio albums. The group consists of guitarist Farin Urlaub, drummer Bela B and bass player Rodrigo González. All three write and perform their songs. History Ea ...

's 1993 hit single "

Schrei nach Liebe "Schrei nach Liebe" ("Cry for Love") is a punk rock song by German band Die Ärzte. It is the second track and the first single from their 1993 album ''Die Bestie in Menschengestalt''. It is one of the best known political anthems and anti-fasci ...

". Three months after the release of ''Chronik 2'', Blume released his first collaborative album with

, called ''

Jung, brutal, gutaussehend ''Jung, brutal, gutaussehend'' ("Young, violent, handsome") is the first collaborative studio album by German rappers Kollegah and Farid Bang. It was released on 19 June 2009 through Selfmade Records. Two follow-ups, '' Jung, brutal, gutaussehe ...

''. In December, Blume released the third part of his ''Zuhältertape-Series''. A year later, Selfmade released the a limited box set with all three ''Zuhältertape's'' and the ''Hoodtape Volume 1,'' which was re-released on 18 December 2010 as ''Hoodtape Volume 1 X-Mas Edition'' with some additional and extended tracks.

2011–2015: ''Bossaura'', ''Jung, brutal, gutaussehend 2'', ''King'' and ''Zuhältertape 4''

In 2011, Kollegah released his album ''Bossaura'', which peaked at number 5 in German album charts. ''

Jung, brutal, gutaussehend 2 ''Jung, brutal, gutaussehend 2'' ("Young, violent, handsome 2") is the second collaborative studio album by German rappers Kollegah and Farid Bang, released on 8 February 2013 via Selfmade Records. Background In June 2009, Kollegah and Farid ...

'', his collaboration album with Farid Bang, was released in 2013 and reached number 1 in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. It sold more than 80,000 copies in the first week. Kollegahs album ''King'' in 2014 sold more than 160,000 copies in the first week and was his second number-one album. ''Zuhältertape 4'' (ZHT 4) was released in December 2015 and also reached number 1 in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

2016–2017: ''Imperator'' and ''Legacy''

In March 2016, Blume founded his own label Alpha Music Empire. The first signing was the rapper Seyed. His debut studio album ''Engel mit der AK'' peaked on number three of the German album charts. On 2 September 2016 he announced his sixth studio album and first under his own label ''Imperator'', which was released on 9 December 2016. ''Imperator'' peaked at number one of the German, Austrian and Swiss album charts. It also became his third solo album to receive a gold certificate. On 10 March 2017, Kollegah announced his first best-of album ''Legacy'' and the "Kollegah Gold-Award", a compilation of all his albums released under Selfmade Records between 2005 and 2015. ''Legacy'' was supported by two singles, "Legacy" and "Millennium". ''Legacy'' was released on 14 July 2017 and peaked in the top 15 of German-speaking Europe.

2017–present: ''JBG 3'', ''Platin war gestern'', ''Monument'', ''Alphagene II'' and ''NBK''

Kollegah and Farid Bang regularly teased ''

Jung Brutal Gutaussehend 3 ''Jung Brutal Gutaussehend 3'' ("Young, violent, handsome 3"; also stylized as ''Jung, brutal, gutaussehend 3'' and abbreviated as ''JBG 3'') is the third collaborative studio album by German rappers Kollegah and Farid Bang. It was released on 1 ...

'' (JBG 3) between March 2016 and 2017. The album was officially announced on 8 September 2017. "

Sturmmaske auf (Intro) "Sturmmaske auf (Intro)" ("Ski mask on") is a song recorded by German rappers Kollegah and Farid Bang for their third collaborative studio album ''Jung Brutal Gutaussehend 3'' (2017). The single was made available for download and streaming on 28 ...

", the first single of the album was announced on 21 September 2017 and released a week later. The single became an immediate success for them, becoming their first and only single to reach the pole position of the German singlecharts. Two more singles have been released; "Gamechanger" and "Ave Maria", both of them entered the charts on high positions. Following the release of the album in December 2017, it broke multiple records in Germany, including the fastest rap album to be certified gold in Germany (they sold 100,000 copies in eight days though pre-orders). and the most streamed project in a week on

Spotify Spotify (; ) is a proprietary Swedish audio streaming and media services provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. It is one of the largest music streaming service providers, with over 456 million monthly active us ...

by a German artist. During their live performance of "All Eyez on us", they announced a reissue of ''Jung Brutal Gutaussehend 3'' with the title ''Jung Brutal Gutaussehend 3: Platin war gestern''. The record was planned to include two EPs – ''Älter Brutaler Skrupelloser EP'' and '' Nafri Trap EP, Vol. 1''. The album was scheduled for release in June but was postponed to 10 August 2018, following the duos desire to expand the ''Älter Brutaler Skrupelloser EP'' to a full album. ''Nafri Trap EP, Vol. 1'' was released on 29 June 2018 as an apology to their fans. ''Platin war gestern'' was supported by three singles – "All Eyez on Us", "Mitternacht 2" and "In die Unendlichkeit". The project became their third collaborative studio album to debut on the pole positions of the German, Austrian and Swiss albumcharts. Blume released his seventh studio album, ''

'', in December 2018. The album ''Alphagene II'' followed in December 2019. ''Alphagene II'' was his eighth number 1 album. In January 2021, he released the album ''Natural Born Killers'' (NBK), a collaboration album with Asche, who released his music at Kollegah's label between 2018 and March 2021.

Controversies

Antisemitism and conspiracy theories

On his third mixtape ''

Zuhältertape Volume 3 Zuhältertape Volume 3 is the third mixtape by German rapper Kollegah, released on 19 December 2009 by Selfmade Records. This mixtape is the sequel to ''Boss der Bosse'' (2006). Hip hop producers including Hookbeatz, B-Case, Six June and Rizbo we ...

'', Blume used the line "Endlösung der Rapperfrage", directly referring to the

Final Solution The Final Solution (german: die Endlösung, ) or the Final Solution to the Jewish Question (german: Endlösung der Judenfrage, ) was a Nazi plan for the genocide of individuals they defined as Jews during World War II. The "Final Solution to th ...

during the

Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...

. Gerhard Strate called it mocking of Holocaust victims. His fourth studio album ''Zuhältertape Vol. 4'' contained statements like "Nutte, Zeit, dass du Putzlappen befeuchtest / Ich bring Schusswaffengeräusche wie die Schutzstaffel der Deutschen" ("Hooker, that time that you moisturize cloths / I bring firearms sounds like the

Schutzstaffel The ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS; also stylized as ''ᛋᛋ'' with Armanen runes; ; "Protection Squadron") was a major paramilitary organization under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany, and later throughout German-occupied Europe d ...

of the Germans") or "Kid, es ist der Boss, der für 'ne Modezeitschrift Posen einnimmt wie die Wehrmacht, die in Polen einschritt" ("Kid, it is the boss, who poses for a fashion magazine like the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previous ...

, which invaded Poland"). In 2016, Blume released the song "Apokalypse", in which he depicts human history as being the good against the bad. The final battle is set in

East Jerusalem East Jerusalem (, ; , ) is the sector of Jerusalem that was held by Jordan during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, as opposed to the western sector of the city, West Jerusalem, which was held by Israel. Jerusalem was envisaged as a separat ...

. The devil is sitting in a

skyscraper A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Modern sources currently define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition. Skyscrapers are very tall high-ris ...

and the climax of the video is a

book burning Book burning is the deliberate destruction by fire of books or other written materials, usually carried out in a public context. The burning of books represents an element of censorship and usually proceeds from a cultural, religious, or politi ...

. After the world is freed from the evil, Blume says that "

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...

and

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

will rebuild the world peacefully" and forgot to mention

Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

. Kollegah denies any accusations of antisemitism. In 2021, he published an album with Asche, a German rapper with Jewish roots. Furthermore, Kollegah and German-Jewish rapper Sun Diego fueled rumours that they plan a collaborative albums together. Kollegah criticized the American foreign policy several times. He also doubts the official version of

9/11 The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial ...

, the

Moon landing A Moon landing is the arrival of a spacecraft on the surface of the Moon. This includes both crewed and robotic missions. The first human-made object to touch the Moon was the Soviet Union's Luna 2, on 13 September 1959. The United St ...

and

evolution theory Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation t ...

and also spread rumours about

Pizzagate "Pizzagate" is a conspiracy theory that went viral during the 2016 United States presidential election cycle. It has been extensively discredited by a wide range of organizations, including the Washington, D.C. police. In March 2016, the p ...

and

chemtrails The chemtrail conspiracy theory is the erroneous belief that long-lasting condensation trails are "chemtrails" consisting of chemical A chemical substance is a form of matter having constant chemical composition and characteristic prope ...

. In November 2016, Blume released the documentation ''Kollegah an Palästina (Eine StreetCinema Dokumentation)'' on his

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

channe
Alpha Music Empire.
He travelled through the

Palestinian territories The Palestinian territories are the two regions of the former British Mandate for Palestine that have been militarily occupied by Israel since the Six-Day War of 1967, namely: the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and the Gaza Strip. The I ...

, visited the

West Bank barrier The Israeli West Bank barrier, comprising the West Bank Wall and the West Bank fence, is a separation barrier built by Israel along the Green Line and inside parts of the West Bank. It is a contentious element of the Israeli–Palestinian c ...

, the refugee camp

Am'ari al-Am'ari Refugee Camp ( ar, مخيّم الأمعري) is a Palestinian refugee camp in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate, located 2 kilometers South of Al Bireh in the central West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Stati ...

and supported a school. The documentation started a controversy in the German rap scene. In 2018, months after release, Kollegah and Farid Bang were criticized for the lines ''commit another Holocaust and come with Molotov'' and ''My body is more defined than those of Auschwitz inmates'' on their album ''Jung Brutal Gutaussehend 3''. They received the coveted German

ECHO award Echo Music Prize (stylised as ECHO, ) was an accolade by the , an association of recording companies of Germany to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry. The first ECHO Awards ceremony was held in 1992, and it was set up to hono ...

for this album and also performed live, and in reaction to this, several artists gave their ECHOs back. Both had originally defended their lines as a form of stylistic means, exaggeration, provocation, artistic boundaries, but later apologized.

Other ventures

In February 2014, Blume launched his own fitness program named ''Bosstransformation''. Two years later he launched the ''Bosstransformation 2'', an updated version. In November 2015, Blume launched his own clothing line ''Deus Maximus''. A year before, his first brand ''Copayn'' had flopped. With his new brand ''Deus Maximus'' he has a cooperation with Def Shop, one of the biggest German online shops.

Personal life

Blume studied law at the

Johannes Gutenberg University The Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (german: Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz) is a public university, public research university in Mainz, Rhineland Palatinate, Germany, named after the printer Johannes Gutenberg since 1946. With approx ...

Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main (river), Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-we ...

for some years. At the age of 15, Blume came in contact with

through his Algerian stepfather. He converted to the religion in the same year. During a concert of his "Imperator" tour in

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as wel ...

, there was a violent incident onstage. As is often the case with rap concerts, a

rap battle Battle rap (also known as rap battling)Edwards, Paul, 2009, p. 25. is a type of rapping performed between two or more performers that incorporates boasts, insults and wordplay. Battle rap is often performed or freestyled spontaneously in live ...

between two spectators should be performed on the stage. One of the participants tried to grab Blume's sunglasses. As a result, Blume shoved the man, kicked him and punched him in the face. A few hours later, videos of the attack were uploaded to

and

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...

. An uninvolved person reported Blume to the police.

Discography

*'' Alphagene'' (2007) *''

'' (2008) *'' Bossaura'' (2011) *''

'' (2014) *''Zuhältertape Vol. 4'' (2015) *''Imperator'' (2016) *''

'' (2018) *''Alphagene II'' (2019) *''Golden Era Tourtape'' (2020) *''Natural Born Killas'' (2021) *''Zuhältertape Vol. 5'' (2021)

Tours

* Alphagene Tour (2008) * Mittelfinger Hoch Tour (2009) * Teens for Cash Tour (2010) * Je mehr Testo besser Tour (2010) * Live 2011 Tour (2011) * JBG 2 Tour (2013) * King Tour (2014) * Red Light Tour (2016) * Imperator Tour (2017) * JBG 3 Tour (2018) * Monument Tour (2019)

Achievements

Five of Kollegahs projects have gone at least

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

in Germany and six of them reached the pole position of the

German album charts The GfK Entertainment charts are the official music charts in Germany and are gathered and published by GfK Entertainment (formerly Media Control and Media Control GfK International), a subsidiary of GfK, on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindust ...

Notes

References

External links

* * {{Authority control 1984 births Living people German rappers German conspiracy theorists German people of Canadian descent German Muslims Converts to Islam Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz alumni People from Friedberg, Hesse