Tokio Hotel facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Tokio Hotel
Tokio Hotel, 2010. L-R: Georg Listing, Bill Kaulitz, Tom Kaulitz, and Gustav Schäfer
Background information
Origin	Magdeburg, Germany
Genres	Alternative rock, electronic rock, pop rock, teen pop emo, pop punk (early)
Years active	2001–present
Labels	Universal Music Germany, Cherrytree, Interscope
Members	Bill Kaulitz Tom Kaulitz Georg Listing Gustav Schäfer

Tokio Hotel is a German pop-rock band. The band started in 2001 and was first called Devilish. All the band members are from Magdeburg in Germany. The youngest members, the Kaulitz twins, were born just before the Berlin Wall came down.

How Tokio Hotel Started

Tokio Hotel was formed by twin brothers Bill Kaulitz (singer) and Tom Kaulitz (guitarist). Their stepfather owned a music school. The band's drummer is Gustav Schäfer, and the bass player is Georg Listing.

The four musicians met in 2001 at a club in Magdeburg. Listing and Schäfer, who knew each other from music school, watched Bill and Tom play on stage. At first, they called their band "Devilish." They played at talent shows and small concerts.

In 2003, Bill Kaulitz, who was thirteen, took part in a children's TV show called "Star Search." Even though he didn't win, music producer Peter Hoffmann noticed him.

The band then changed their name to "Tokio Hotel." They chose "Tokio" because they loved the Japanese city Tokyo. They added "Hotel" because they spent a lot of time traveling and staying in hotels.

Soon, a music company called Sony BMG signed them. Hoffmann brought in David Jost and Pat Benzner to help the band write songs and play their instruments better. Many songs on their first album were written by this team and Bill Kaulitz. However, Sony ended their contract before the album came out.

In 2005, Universal Music Group signed Tokio Hotel. They helped the band become very popular. Tokio Hotel is now one of the biggest music groups from Germany.

Meet the Band Members

Bill Kaulitz: The Singer

Bill Kaulitz was born on September 1, 1989, in Leipzig, Germany. He is the lead singer for Tokio Hotel. Bill is the identical twin brother of Tom Kaulitz and is ten minutes younger. They used to live in Magdeburg, Germany.

Before Tokio Hotel, their band was called Devilish. Bill was on the German "Star Search" show in 2001. This show helped Peter Hoffman discover him.

After their first European tour, Bill had a problem with his voice. Doctors found a cyst on his vocal cords. He had surgery and needed three weeks to recover. After that, he was able to perform concerts with the band again.

Tom Kaulitz: The Guitarist

Tom Kaulitz was born on September 1, 1989, in Leipzig, ten minutes before his twin brother, Bill. He is from Magdeburg, Germany. Tom and Bill now live in Berlin, Germany.

Since 2007, Tom has used Gibson guitars. He has said that his favorite musicians include Aerosmith and German hip-hop artists like Samy Deluxe.

Georg Listing: The Bass Player

Georg Listing was born on March 31, 1987. His hometown is Halle. He started playing bass guitar when he was thirteen years old. Since 2007, he has used a Sandberg bass.

Georg has mentioned that his playing style was greatly influenced by Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers. He also likes the bands Die Ärzte and Oasis.

Gustav Schäfer: The Drummer

Gustav Schäfer was born on September 8, 1988, in his hometown of Magdeburg. He has an older sister. Gustav has been playing the drums since he was five years old.

His musical influences include bands like Metallica, and singers such as Joe Cocker and Rod Stewart.

Awards and Achievements

Tokio Hotel has won many awards throughout their career. Here are some of their notable wins:

2005 Awards

• Comet Awards: Best Newcomer, Super Comet
• Eins Live Krone: Best Newcomer
• Bambi Awards: Best Pop National
• Golden Penguin: Best Single, Best Pop, Rock Band

2006 Awards

• Golden Penguin: Album of the year, Band of the year, Song of the year ('Der Letzte Tag')
• Sold-out-Award of Königpilsen Arena: Ausverkaufte Tourhalle
• ECHO Awards: Best Newcomer
• Steiger Awards: Best Newcomer
• Bambi Awards: Best Pop National Act

2007 Awards

• European Border Breakers Award (for "Schrei")
• BZ-Kulturpreis: (Rock)
• Echo: Best Music Video
• Bravo - Goldener Otto: Superrockband
• Viva Comet: Supercomet, Best Band, Best Music Video
• Jabra Music: Die Beste Band (The Best Band)
• Festivalbar Premio Digital
• Goldene Stimmgabel: Best Rock International
• Belgian TMF awards: Best Video, Best Album, Best Pop, Best New Artist
• MTV Europe Music Awards (Munich): Inter Act
• Nickelodeon Kid's Choice Awards (Milão) - Best Band

2008 Awards

• NRJ Music: Best International Band
• Echo Awards: Best Music Video
• Comet Awards: Best Band, Best Video, Best Live Act, Super Comet
• MTV VMA Music Awards: Best New Artist
• TMF Awards: Best Male Artist International (Bill Kaulitz), Best Video International
• MTV Latin America Awards: Song of the Year, Best Fanclub-Venezuela, Best New Artist-International, Best Ringtone
• MTV EMA Music Awards: Headliner

2010 Awards

• GEMA German Music Authors Award
• MTV best world stage performance

Music Releases

Singles

• August 15, 2005: Durch Den Monsun
• November 25, 2005: Schrei
• March 10, 2006: Rette Mich
• August 28, 2006: Der Letzte Tag / Wir Schließen Uns Ein
• January 26, 2007: Übers Ende der Welt
• April 7, 2007: Spring Nicht
• May 12, 2007: Monsoon
• August 27, 2007: Ready, Set, Go!
• November 16, 2007: An Deiner Seite (Ich Bin Da) / 1000 Meere
• September 18, 2009: Automatic / Automatisch
• December 18, 2009: World behind my wall / Lass uns laufen

DVDs

• December 2, 2005: Leb die Sekunde - Behind The Scenes
• April 7, 2006: Schrei Live
• April 7, 2007: Spring Nicht
• November 30, 2007: Zimmer 483 - Live In Europe
• December 5, 2008: Tokio Hotel TV - Caught on Camera

Images for kids

• 

  Bill Kaulitz performing in Hessisch-Lichtenau, Germany in 2006

• 

  Tokio Hotel in 2009

See also

In Spanish: Tokio Hotel para niños