Sascha Schmitz
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Sascha Röntgen (' Schmitz; born 5 January 1972), better known by his stage name Sasha, is a German singer, songwriter, and occasional actor. He is also known by his
alter ego An alter ego (Latin for "other I", " doppelgänger") means an alternate self, which is believed to be distinct from a person's normal or true original personality. Finding one's alter ego will require finding one's other self, one with a differen ...
Dick Brave, and part of the group Dick Brave & the Backbeats. Due to a legal dispute with the Welsh DJ also named Sasha, he is known as Sasha Alexander in the United States.


Early life

Sasha is the elder of two children born to Fritz Schmitz, a former
Bundeswehr The ''Bundeswehr'' (, meaning literally: ''Federal Defence'') is the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. The ''Bundeswehr'' is divided into a military part (armed forces or ''Streitkräfte'') and a civil part, the military part con ...
soldier, and his wife Ramona, a nursery nurse. Raised in a
Christian 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 ...
home alongside his younger brother Norman (born 1976), Sasha spent his childhood in Soest,
North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a States of Germany, state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more tha ...
, following his parents' divorce. His early musical interest grew when he started his first school band, called Bad to the Bone, which "was exactly as bad as the name suggests", he later stated. Sasha's first professional band was called Junk Food and modelled on bands such as
Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...
and the
Red Hot Chili Peppers Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983, comprising vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea, drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist John Frusciante. Their music incorporates elements of alternative rock, funk ...
. Although the band was never offered a recording contract, they played live all over their area, resulting in occasional busking sessions with his friend Benedict, with whom he also performed as the 'Hin und Hair Schmitz' duo. In 1992, Junk Food won a local talent contest which entitled them to record demo tapes at the Click Music Studios in
Werl Werl (; Westphalian: ''Wiärl'') is a town located in the district of Soest in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Werl is easily accessible because it is located between the Sauerland, Münsterland, and the Ruhr Area. The Hellweg road ...
with producers Michael "Grant Michael F." Kersting and Stephan "Pomez Di Lorenzo" Baader. While the band broke up shortly thereafter, Grant and Di Lorenzo recognized his singing talents and hired Sasha as a backing vocalist for several of their projects.


Recording career


1996–2002

During the following years, Sasha earned his money as a background singer for several artists, including virtual euro-dance projects ''H.I.M'' and ''Sir Prize'', whose singles "Lookin' Out 4 Luv" and "Don't Go Away" were released in German-speaking Europe, but led to short promotional tours in Tunisia. His contribution to German rapper Der Wolf's debut single "Gibt's doch gar nicht" however, scored him his first uncredited appearance on the
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...
and
Swiss Singles Chart The Swiss Hitparade (german: link=no, Schweizer Hitparade) is Switzerland's main Record chart, music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland. The Swiss charts include: * ...
s in early 1997. Soon thereafter, Sasha was consulted to sing on "Walk on By", the début single of rapper '' Young Deenay''. The song became a top ten hit in Central Europe and resulted in a second collaboration, entitled "Wanna Be Your Lover", on which he received his first credited solo part and filmed a music video for. In 1998, Sasha signed a solo contract with
Warner Music Warner Music Group Corp. ( d.b.a. Warner Music Group, commonly abbreviated as WMG) is an American multinational entertainment and record label conglomerate headquartered in New York City. It is one of the " big three" recording companies and th ...
. He worked with Grant, Di Lorenzo and Pete Smith on the majority of his début album '' Dedicated to...'', whose
reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...
-influenced début single "I'm Still Waitin'" saw him re-teaming with Deenay and reached the top twenty of the charts in summer 1998. The track was followed by "If You Believe", which would become his highest-charting single to date and reached the top five in Austria, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, and Switzerland, receiving one platinum and four gold discs. A "blend of romantic ballads and quicker funk- and reggae-inspired tracks", according to '' Billboard'', the album was eventually released in fall 1998 and sold more than 400,000 copies in Germany alone. With "We Can Leave the World" and "I Feel Lonely" the album spawned two further top ten hits, which Sasha performed on a tour between September and October 1999. The following two years he was awarded several international prizes such as a
Bambi ''Bambi'' is a 1942 American animated drama film directed by David Hand (supervising a team of sequence directors), produced by Walt Disney and based on the 1923 book ''Bambi, a Life in the Woods'' by Austrian author and hunter Felix Salten ...
, a Comet, an
ECHO In audio signal processing and acoustics, an echo is a reflection of sound that arrives at the listener with a delay after the direct sound. The delay is directly proportional to the distance of the reflecting surface from the source and the lis ...
, and the
Goldene Europa Goldene Europa award is the oldest German Television award for artists and entertainers. It was awarded from 1968 to 2003. In the years 1989 and 2001, there were no ceremonies. Since 1981, the gala was broadcast on television. The original sculpt ...
, the
Goldene Kamera The Goldene Kamera ("Golden Camera") is an annual German film and television award, awarded by the Funke Mediengruppe. The award show is usually held in early February in Hamburg, but has also taken place in Berlin in the past. The gold-plat ...
and became the first German singer to be nominated for Best Male Act International at
MTV Europe Music Award The MTV Europe Music Awards (originally named MTV European Music Awards, commonly abbreviated as MTV EMA) are awards presented by Paramount International Networks to honour artists and music in pop culture. It was originally conceived as an a ...
s. In May 2000, Sasha released his second album '' ...you'' throughout Central Europe. Although neither its leading single "Let Me Be the One", nor follow-up singles "Chemical Reaction" and "Owner of My Heart" managed to reach the top ten on the charts, ''...you'' debuted within the top five of the albums charts in Austria, Germany and Switzerland, receiving a gold certification by the Austrian and the German leg of the IFPI. '' Surfin' on a Backbeat'', Sasha's third album was released in October 2001. It reached the top ten of the albums charts in Germany, but charted significantly lower than its predecessors throughout the rest of Europe, reaching the top forty in Switzerland only. It was
certified gold Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...
by the German leg of the
IFPI The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a non-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland and founded in Italy in 1 ...
for more than 200,000 sold copies. A reissue of the album, containing two previously unreleased tracks, was released in July 2002 and produced the 2002 FIFA World Cup television theme "This Is My Time".


2003–2004

By 2003, Sasha started performing as his
alter ego An alter ego (Latin for "other I", " doppelgänger") means an alternate self, which is believed to be distinct from a person's normal or true original personality. Finding one's alter ego will require finding one's other self, one with a differen ...
Dick Brave, the lead singer of a
rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...
band called Dick Brave & The Backbeats, whose members shared a fictional band history. Inspired by
Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds are an Australian rock band formed in 1983 by vocalist Nick Cave, multi-instrumentalist Mick Harvey and guitarist-vocalist Blixa Bargeld. The band has featured international personnel throughout its career and pr ...
and originally conceived as a humorous lark (Sasha and his fellow musicians André "Adriano Batolba" Tolba, Maik "Mike Scott" Schott, Felix "Phil X Hanson" Wiegand and Martell "Matt L. Hanson" actually "acted" as their alter egos on-stage and during interviews), the
quintet A quintet is a group containing five members. It is commonly associated with musical groups, such as a string quintet, or a group of five singers, but can be applied to any situation where five similar or related objects are considered a single ...
recorded a whole album together, including re-arranged
cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...
s of songs such as
Pink Pink is the color of a namesake flower that is a pale tint of red. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, politeness, ...
's "
Get the Party Started "Get the Party Started" is a song by American singer Pink, released on October 16, 2001, as the lead single from her second album, ''Missundaztood'' (2001). It received positive reviews and became an international success and reached the top ten ...
", George Michael's "
Freedom Freedom is understood as either having the ability to act or change without constraint or to possess the power and resources to fulfill one's purposes unhindered. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving on ...
", and
Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...
's "
Black or White "Black or White" is a single by the American singer Michael Jackson. It was released by Epic Records on November 11, 1991, as the first single from Jackson's eighth studio album, '' Dangerous'' (1991). Jackson wrote, composed, and produced it w ...
". ''Dick This!'' eventually became Sasha's first number-one record, and produced a remake of 1961's "
Take Good Care of My Baby "Take Good Care of My Baby" is a song written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin. The song was made famous by Bobby Vee, when it was released in 1961. Bobby Vee versions While searching for material for Bobby Vee to record, Vee's producer Snuff ...
", as a single. In November 2004, the project was discontinued, following a final concert at the
Dortmund Dortmund (; Westphalian nds, Düörpm ; la, Tremonia) is the third-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne and Düsseldorf, and the eighth-largest city of Germany, with a population of 588,250 inhabitants as of 2021. It is the la ...
er Westfalenhalle on 22 November 2004. On 7 January 2006, the band re-formed temporarily to perform at the wedding party of
Pink Pink is the color of a namesake flower that is a pale tint of red. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, politeness, ...
and motocross racer Carey Hart in Costa Rica.


2005–present

Following a two years-hiatus, Sasha returned in 2006 with his fourth regular album '' Open Water''. Sasha was heavily involved in the album's writing and production process, for which he consulted musicians Fabio Trentini and Robin Grubert. The album charted significantly higher than its predecessor ''Surfin' on a Backbeat'' (2001) throughout Europe, reaching number seven on the German Albums Chart and the top 40 in Austria and Switzerland, but is Sasha's lowest-selling album, to date. ''Open Water'' produced two singles only, including "Slowly" and "Goodbye". In fall 2006, a ''Greatest Hits'' compilation was released which reached number six on the German charts and was eventually
certified platinum Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...
. In 2007, Sasha released "Hide & Seek", the theme song for the German motion picture ''Die drei ??? – Das Geheimnis der Geisterinsel'', as a single. The song peaked at number eight on the German Singles Chart and, in addition, appeared on a re-release edition of the greatest hits album. On 7 July 2007, he performed at the German leg of
Live Earth Live Earth was an event developed to increase environmental awareness through entertainment. Background Founded by Emmy-winning producer Kevin Wall, in partnership with former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, ''Live Earth'' was built upon the be ...
in Hamburg. In 2009, his fifth studio album '' Good News on a Bad Day'' was released, it had the best sales so far since '' ...you''. In 2011, he returned to his alter ego and released his second album as Dick Brave, ''Rock'n'Roll Therapy''. In late 2014, Sasha's sixth studio album, ''The One'', was released. On 7 May 2021, Sasha was featured on a remix of the song "Hypa Hypa" by German metalcore band
Electric Callboy Electric Callboy (formerly known as Eskimo Callboy) is a German electronicore band formed in Castrop-Rauxel in 2010. They take a more relaxed approach to the genre, and are known for their comedic songs, live shows and videos. History Early r ...
(formerly Eskimo Callboy).


Acting career

In 2006, Sasha made his big screen debut with a small role in the German comedy film ''
Goldene Zeiten ''Goldene Zeiten'' (''Out of Bounds'') is a German film released in 2006. It is the last film in director trilogy of films set in his hometown Unna, and was preceded by '' Bang Boom Bang'' (1999) and ''If It Don't Fit, Use a Bigger Hammer ''I ...
'', directed by Peter Thorwarth. The following year he accepted a supporting role in the film adaptation of ''
Why Men Don't Listen and Women Can't Read Maps ''Why Men Don't Listen and Women Can't Read Maps'' (german: Warum Männer nicht zuhören und Frauen schlecht einparken, literally "Why Men Don't Listen and Women Park Badly") is a 2007 German comedy film directed by Leander Haußmann Leander H ...
'' (2007) alongside Benno Fürmann and
Jessica Schwarz Jessica Schwarz (born 5 May 1977) is a German film and TV actress. Life and career Schwarz was born in Erbach im Odenwald and grew up in the small town of Michelstadt, Germany. She won a contest of the German teen magazine ''Bravo'' in 1993. ...
. In the film he portrayed the comedic role of a brutal biker. In 2008, Sasha appeared in the German movie ', for which he contributed two songs to the soundtrack under the pseudonym Nelson Rogers.


Discography

Studio albums * '' Dedicated to...'' (1998) * '' ...you'' (2000) * '' Surfin' on a Backbeat'' (2001) * '' Open Water'' (2006) * '' Good News on a Bad Day'' (2009) * ''
The One The ONE is a shopping centre in Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong. It is built on the site of the former Tung Ying Building at 100 Nathan Road. It was developed by Chinese Estates Holdings and opened in 2010. Owner Joseph Lau Luen-hung g ...
'' (2014) * '' Schlüsselkind'' (2018)


Filmography


Movies

* ''
Goldene Zeiten ''Goldene Zeiten'' (''Out of Bounds'') is a German film released in 2006. It is the last film in director trilogy of films set in his hometown Unna, and was preceded by '' Bang Boom Bang'' (1999) and ''If It Don't Fit, Use a Bigger Hammer ''I ...
'' (2006) — guest 3 * ''
Warum Männer nicht zuhören und Frauen schlecht einparken ''Why Men Don't Listen and Women Can't Read Maps'' (german: Warum Männer nicht zuhören und Frauen schlecht einparken, literally "Why Men Don't Listen and Women Park Badly") is a 2007 German comedy film directed by Leander Haußmann Leander H ...
'' (2007) — Sven * ' (2008) — Tommy Beck * ''C.I.S. – Chaoten im Sondereinsatz'' — Lukas Maler (lead role)


Television shows

* ''
I Can See Your Voice ''I Can See Your Voice'' (abbreviated ''ICSYV'' and stylized as ''I Can See Your Voice — Mystery music game show'') () is an international television mystery music game show franchise that originated in South Korea. History In 2012, prod ...
'' (2020) — first season guest artist


References


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sasha 1972 births Living people English-language singers from Germany People from Soest, Germany Echo (music award) winners Masked Singer winners Place of birth missing (living people) 21st-century German male singers