Cologne. Bill and Tom Kaulitz are part of the jury from RTL’s
show “Deutschland Sucht Den Superstar”. The twins of the band Tokio
Hotel explain what their expectations are of the DSDS liveshows, whether
they’d like to make the winning song and what they think about Angela Merkel.
Bill and Tom Kaulitz, current judges of DSDS are relaxed. They sit in
a drab conference room of RTL in Cologne. Seven interviews will happen
on this day - nothing unusual for musicians of Tokio Hotel. The twins,
who live in the United States, are professionals in the media.
They’re used to the din. In 2005 they had their breakthrough with
“Durch den Monsun”. Followed by several MTV awards, toured in the US,
selling over six million albums, countless teenagers fans (mainly
screaming girls). In an interview with “WAZ” they spoke about their work
as judges in DSDS, Heino and Angela Merkel.
♦ Soon we’ll be able to see the live shows of DSDS. What can we expect from the candidates?
Tom: We have low expectations. It’s just incredible
the pressure for the candidates, who have never previously been on such a
big stage. I’ll probably be relatively relaxed in the first liveshow of
DSDS.
Bill: Many people can’t even imagine what they will
see on a big stage. Candidates are always far in front of us, the jury,
and sing without all that technology. Being on such a big stage, as a
musician I can understand that simply it’s another thing altogether.
Then even the audience, outfit and performance. This is really quite a
lot. And yes, candidates don’t even have any preparation. Yesterday it
was pretty normal for them to go to their jobs or go to school. It will
be exciting to see DSDS candidates and see who’s going to like the
situation.
♦ Bill, you were in the talent show Star Search, and you were “kicked out”. What was that feeling?
Bill: It was pretty sad. I went there because I saw
no other option. I lived in a village and I didn’t know where and how I
could show my band. And if you join in a talent show, then of course you
want to get as far as possible. Ultimately, for us it went really well.
Of course, it’s not always like this. For most participants it’s very
hard to make anything after the show. Among people who fly out earlier,
it’s almost impossible.
Tom: We’ve been very fortunate to have a very charismatic guitarist.
Bill: We had a lot of offers after transmission. But
then one of our producers discovered us at a club in Magdeburg. We met
there every weekend.
♦ So it wasn’t necessary for you to go to a talent show like DSDS?
Tom: There are always times when people do it as
well, but today it has become so incredibly difficult, because the
record companies have no more money, the music industry has changed
radically. A platform like DSDS is good, where for the winner there’s
not only the album, there’s a record contract, but also 500 000€. So you
can do incredibly much as musician.
♦ How does it feel to sit as the DSDS judges and to judge people?
Bill: We see it more as a try to help the candidate.
We have, just at this point of the program, both no interest in seeing
us fail for someone and then make fun about it. We always say our honest
opinion.
♦ But there was a DSDS contestant who has arrived not as good. You called Oksana a “porn star”.
Bill: This is obviously cut on TV and it looks much
harder than it actually was. I told her a few things about it. But that
was an honest opinion from me. I just told her how I feel about that.
And as before, I believe that she’ll make a career.
♦ During the show, do the candidates speak with you?
Tom: No, not at all. The only thing we see are these
three minutes as a jury when the candidates are in front of us.
Therefore, we can also assess the people naturally difficult. Some have a
completely different face when they stand before us.
Bill: We chat with the candidates. But to us, the
jury, they’re of course very different from each other. So for us the
live shows will be exciting. This is exciting. I think the public wants a
superstar, which you can treat as a good person. And there are always
candidates who are changing quite evidently over time, like the
personality.
Tom: They get very much attention now. Some people just stay in your head.
♦ From this, there was always at least one per DSDS season.
Tom: Yes. All the candidates have been nice to us in the castings. Everyone was super nice, because they knew we have to decide.
Bill and Tom: But in the live shows we don’t decide anymore.
♦ Were there any other talent show that asked for you? The Voice?
Bill: Actually all of them asked us. There were inquiries every year. The Voice was also there.
♦ Then why DSDS?
Bill: First of all, for us it was a timing issue. It
has the time that fits better, because we’re still in the studio. And
we said: “Let us make the biggest and most successful mission.”
Tom: But shows like The Voice are also good.
♦ Did you have doubts whether you should participate as DSDS judges?
Bill: Yes. A few years ago we had such requests but
we didn’t take it serious. And then that has changed. In America, all
the great singers and artists sit in the shows. This has already given
us a boost. Steve Tyler, I find him great. So this was the first thing
that distinguished DSDS, and we also got to like doing this!
♦ Do you already have favorites?
Tom: We don’t want to tell names.
Bill: I’ve also kicked off things with the Laura story. Therefore we’re very cautious about it.
Tom: There are definitely people we find good. Basically we have all chosen. There are a few that have extremely good potential.
♦ Would you like to influence the winning song?
Bill: I can’t make general statements. That depends
on how the candidate develops through the race. Now if it’s someone who
thinks we’re totally cool, we would obviously write a song for him/her.
♦ Do you have a favorite song from Modern Talking?
Bill and Tom: No.
Bill: But that wasn’t our time. I know it only from stories.
♦ Can “Durch Den Monsun” be on the current Heino album?
Bill: I wouldn’t mind it now.
Tom: Heino has been number 1. By itself, probably it would have been fine. This is a good song.
♦ What comes after DSDS? A new album?
Bill: We’re in the stdio working on new stuff. The new album will be released this year. We just don’t know when exactly.
♦ Is it true that you’re fans of Angela Merkel?
Tom: The term fans is probably a bit exaggerated.
Bill: … but what I always say, and that applies to
all politicians: I think it’s good that people in general do their job.
Many people complain about the politicians but they themselves wouldn’t
do the job. I wouldn’t want to switch places with Angela Merkel, because
I think that’s an incredibly long and difficult task. What I find
important is positive thinking. In the US the president is held by
everyone. In Germany this is far less. I have just a good basic sense
with Angela Merkel. I like her as a person.
Corrections by @BTKFans. Translation by Tokio Hotel Rocks My World.
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