About Die Fantastischen Vier
Die Fantastischen Vier also known as Fanta 4 is a German hip hop group founded in 1989. The band members are Smudo (Michael Bernd Schmidt), And.Ypsilon (Andreas Rieke), Thomas D (Thomas Dürr), also dubbed “Hausmeister” (janitor), and Dee Jot Hausmarke (Michi Beck).
Die Fantastischen Vier Members
- Smudo
- Michi Beck
- Thomas D
- Andreas Rieke
Die Fantastischen Vier History
In the mid 1980’s Rieke and Schmidt formed the ‘Terminal Team’. In 1989 they were joined by Dürr and Beck they renamed the group as Die Fantastischen Vier (literally: “The Fantastic Four”). They made German hip hop, or Deutschen Sprechgesang popular in Germany as they were the first to register the first chart hit with their 1992 single “Die da?!” from the album 4 Gewinnt, hitting #2 in Germany and #1 in Austria and Switzerland.
After traveling to Los Angeles in the late 1980s, the group realized the lack of connection between the struggles of “the poor Blacks in the United States and middle-class Whites in Germany,” and made a conscious effort to move away from the typical and cliché American gangster rap. The group never got involved with US-American gangsta rap clichés, reacting with tongue-in-cheek humor to verbal attacks of alleged German gangsta rappers. In the albums following 4 Gewinnt, the band matured and progressed to a more serious and philosophic style.
Their breakthrough came in 1992 when they released their hit single Die Da?! (Her?! The One Over There?!) which was arguably the first German hip hop hit.
In addition to the group’s works, Thomas D, Hausmarke and Ypsilon also produced successful solo albums and the four had their own weekly show Die 4. Dimension, named after their third album, which aired on the German pay TV channel Premiere in 1993/1994.
In 1996 they established their label ‘Four Music ‘ with its headquarters in Stuttgart, but were later moved to Berlin-Kreuzberg.
In 1999 they released their seventh album ‘4:99’ on their own label.After the #2 hit “MfG”, three singles were released at the same time, a first in German music business. Each one can be associated with one of the rappers: “Le Smou” (The Smou; Smudo), “Michi Beck in Hell” (Michi Beck) and “Buenos Dias Messias” (Good day, Messiah; Thomas D).
In late September 2004 they released the album ‘Viel’. Their tour to promote the album was their most successful and best-attended to date.
In 2005, Fanta 4’s first greatest hits album was published. It includes all singles, as well as several other songs and rare footage from the band’s early days, when they were still called “Terminal Team” and
rapped in English.
On 7 April 2007, the number-one album Fornika was released, preceded by the single “Ernten was wir säen” (Reap what we sow).
They are also the German voices of the Penguins (Michael Beck as Skipper, Thomas D. as Kowalski, Andreas Rieke as Rico and Michael Bernd Schmidt as Private) in the Madagascar film series.
In 2014 to mark their 25th anniversary they released the album ‘Rekord’. The album topped the charts in Germany.
Die Fantastischen Vier PhotoDie Fantastischen Vier Captain Fantastic
Captain Fantastic is Fanta 4 tenth studio album which was released on 27th April 2018. During an interview Smudo explained that “Captain Fantastic is not really a captain or a superhero, it’s a mindset that says, do not worry so much about whether you can still go hip hop in your old age!”
Tracklist
- Captain Fantastic
- Tunnel
- Together
- Fanta Amera
- Moduland.Y
- Hitisn
- Watchmen
- All (Skit)
- Endzeitstimmung
- Hot feat. Flo Mega
- Henson JJ Barkley (Skit)
- All beginning is Yeah
- That’s my thing
- Monkeys with weapons
- Hitisn Reprise feat Tom Gaebel
- Continue feat Damion
Die Fantastischen Vier Albums
- 1991: Jetzt geht’s ab!
- 1992: 4 Gewinnt
- 1993: Die 4. Dimension
- 1994: Megavier
- 1995: Lauschgift
- 1996: Live und direkt
- 1999: 4:99
- 2000: MTV Unplugged
- 2003: Live in Stuttgart
- 2004: Viel
- 2005: Viel live
- 2005: Best of 1990-2005
- 2007: Fornika
- 2009: Heimspiel
- 2010: Für Dich Immer Noch Fanta Sie
- 2014: Rekord
- 2015: Vier und Jetzt: Best Of 1990-2015
- 2018: Captain Fantastic
Die Fantastischen Vier Songs
- Mikrofonprofessor
- Hausmeister Thomas D
- Die da
- Frohes Fest
- Hausmeister Thomas D. ’92
- Saft
- Lass die Sonne rein
- Zu geil für diese Welt
- Tag am Meer
- Sie ist weg
- Populär
- Nur in deinem Kopf
- Raus
- Der Picknicker
- MfG
- Le Smou
- Buenos Dias Messias
- Michi Beck in Hell
- Tag am Meer (Unplugged)
- Sie ist weg (Unplugged)
- Troy
- Sommerregen
- Geboren
- Ernten was wir säen
- Einfach sein
- Ichisichisichisich
- Yeah Yeah Yeah
- Gebt uns ruhig die Schuld (den Rest könnt ihr behalten)
- Danke
- 25
- Und los
- Name drauf
- Endzeitstimmung
- Tunnel
- Zusammen
- Captain Fantastic
- tunnel
- Together
- Fantanamera
- Moduland.Y
- Hitisn
- Watchmen
- All (Skit)
- Endzeitstimmung
- Hot feat. Flo Mega
- Henson J.J. Barkley (Skit)
- That’s my thing
- All beginning is Yeah
- That’s my thing
- Monkeys with weapons
- Hitisn Reprise feat. Tom Gaebel
- Continue feat. Damion
Die Fantastischen Vier Video
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