Bausa - GELDERN Open Air

BAUSA 2024

There are rappers, and then there is BAUSA. Who else delivered "Was du Liebe nennst", the first platinum hit in German rap, only to release "9 nach 9" a year later alongside badchieff and SIRA - a summer anthem that held the number one spot on the German charts for six weeks and accumulated over 140 million streams, earning triple platinum status? Who else took their hall and arena tour across Germany, Austria, and Switzerland last year to captivate audiences, before convincing millions of TV viewers during prime time on ProSieben's "Schlag den Star"?

BAUSA is undoubtedly one of the most successful and influential artists of our time - a born entertainer. With hits for the ages. With a raspy voice as if after three packs of Marlboro Red and a litre of whiskey. But also with charm, self-irony, and a musical genius that has no equal. Anyone who has ever watched this 35-year-old sit down at the piano or pick up a guitar immediately recognizes the exceptional talent of this versatile artist - whether as a rapper, singer, or songwriter, composer, producer, and active head of the Two Sides label, where he personally handles A&R and scouting for Sony's joint venture. He lives for music like no one else - without it, he simply cannot exist.

But how did Julian Otto become BAUSA, one of Germany's most distinctive sprechgesang artists? Look to Bietigheim-Bissingen, a small Swabian town - incidentally a rap metropolis and home to BAUSA, an artist for whom genre boundaries are unknown. Influences come from hip-hop, R&B, soul, funk, and his affinity for electronic music. In short: a colourful mix of urban pop sounds. You have to understand this to truly grasp the artist.