DJ BoBo facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
DJ BoBo
|
|
|---|---|
DJ BoBo performing in 2024
|
|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Peter René Baumann |
| Born | 5 January 1968 |
| Origin | Kölliken, Switzerland |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) |
|
| Years active | 1989–present |
| Labels |
|
Peter René Baumann (born on January 5, 1968), known as DJ BoBo, is a famous Swiss singer, songwriter, rapper, dancer, and music producer. He has sold over 14 million records around the world. He has released 12 studio albums and many collections of his popular songs. DJ BoBo has also released 34 singles, which are individual songs. Many of these songs became very popular in Europe.
As a producer of dance music, DJ BoBo first became very successful with his song "Somebody Dance with Me". This song used a tune from Rockwell's "Somebody's Watching Me". He had many other hit songs like "Keep on Dancing", "Take Control", "Everybody", "Let the Dream Come True", "Love Is All Around", "Freedom", "Pray", and "What a Feeling". His song "Chihuahua" was also a huge hit. Most of his songs have a fast Eurodance sound with female singers and rap parts by BoBo himself.
Between 1992 and 2007, he had 27 songs that made it onto the music charts in Switzerland and Germany. He also won ten World Music Awards for being Switzerland's best-selling artist. DJ BoBo has received many Gold and Platinum awards for his music. He has been very successful in Europe, Canada, Asia, and South America.
Contents
DJ BoBo's Journey in Music
Early Years: 1985 to 1991
Peter René Baumann was born in Kölliken, Switzerland, in 1968. His father was Italian, and his mother was Swiss. At first, Peter wanted to work with sweets and baking. But this changed when he discovered breakdancing after finishing high school. He loved dancing and took part in many dance contests. He even made it into the Top 10 of a German dance contest called "Disco Kings" with his amazing moves.
Baumann started his career as a DJ in 1985. The next year, he was a runner-up in the Swiss DJ Championships. He continued to work as a DJ in nightclubs like Don Paco and Hazyland in Switzerland. He gained a lot of experience and decided to make his own music. His first song, "I Love You", came out in late 1989. He still worked as a DJ but focused on creating more of his own songs. In 1991, DJ BoBo released two more singles, "Ladies in the House" and "Let's Groove On". "Let's Groove On" was more successful and even appeared on his first album.
Becoming Famous: 1992 to 1996
DJ BoBo became very popular around the world when he released his hit song "Somebody Dance with Me" in November 1992. This song had catchy parts sung by Emel Aykanat and rap verses by BoBo. The song quickly became number one in Switzerland and Sweden. It also reached the Top 5 in many other European countries, including Germany. "Somebody Dance with Me" sold over 250,000 copies in Germany, earning a Gold award.
His second hit, "Keep on Dancing", used a similar style. It reached the Top 5 in Switzerland and Germany and the Top 10 in other parts of Europe. This song also earned a Gold award in Germany. His first album, Dance with Me, was released in October 1993. It stayed on the music charts across Europe for a long time. Another song from the album, "Take Control", also became a hit. It earned him another Gold award in Germany and entered the Top 20 in many countries.
DJ BoBo proved he was not a one-hit wonder. In the summer of 1994, he released "Everybody". This song reached number 2 in Germany and sold 500,000 copies, earning a Platinum award. "Everybody" was a bit different from his earlier songs. It mixed house music with hip hop (called "hip house"). It featured female singers on the chorus and BoBo rapping the verses.
In the fall of 1994, his second album, There Is a Party, was released. This album reached number 4 in Switzerland and earned a Platinum award for selling over 50,000 copies. In Germany, it entered the Top 10 and stayed on the chart for 26 weeks, eventually getting a Gold award. The song "Let the Dream Come True" from the album was number one in Switzerland and in the Top 5 in Germany, where it also earned a Gold award. The next song, "Love Is All Around", entered the Top 20 in several countries and was certified Gold in Germany. This was his sixth Gold record in a row!
Because of his success, DJ BoBo represented Switzerland at the World Music Awards in Monaco in 1995. He was named the "World's Best Selling Swiss Artist of the Year". In the summer of 1995, DJ BoBo went on a tour in Asia, followed by a trip to Australia. Later that year, he toured all over Europe, performing for 400,000 fans.
BoBo released his first slow song, "Love Is the Price", in January 1996. He performed it on a popular TV show called Wetten, dass..?. Later that year, DJ BoBo won another World Music Award for being the "World's Best Selling Swiss Artist of the Year". He performed "Freedom" (which was his eighth Gold record in Germany) and his new song "Love Is the Price".
Growing Popularity: 1996 to 1999
The album World in Motion was released in September 1996. It showed that DJ BoBo was still very popular and even broke his old records. In just a few weeks, the album reached number 3 in Germany and earned a Platinum award for selling 500,000 copies. In Switzerland, the album went straight to number 1 and earned a Double-Platinum award for selling 100,000 copies. It stayed on the Swiss album chart for an amazing 67 weeks, making it one of the Top 40 albums of all time there. After World in Motion came out, DJ BoBo went on a 20-day tour in Asia. Then he spent a month touring in Brazil, Chile, and Colombia.
In April 1997, DJ BoBo received his third World Music Award in Monaco. He was again the "World's Best Selling Swiss Artist of the Year" and performed his song "Respect Yourself".
DJ BoBo kept his unique sound but also tried new things. He started singing more on his song "Where Is Your Love", released in March 1998. A month later, his album Magic came out. It stayed at number 1 for four weeks in Switzerland and earned a Platinum award. In Germany, the album reached number 5 and stayed on the chart for 21 weeks, earning another Gold award.
In May of that year, BoBo won his fourth World Music Award for being the "World's Best Selling Swiss Artist of the Year". Soon after, his song "Celebrate" was released. During this time, DJ BoBo and his team were busy getting ready for his "Life on Tour" concerts and the Magic shows. About 250,000 people watched these shows in 35 concert places across Europe. Soon after, DJ BoBo received his fifth World Music Award in a row for being the "World's Best Selling Swiss Artist of the Year".
New Music and Tours: 1999 to 2001
DJ BoBo's sixth album, Level 6, was released in October 1999. It immediately reached number 1 on the Swiss album charts. It eventually earned a Platinum award in Switzerland and a Gold award in Germany. Two songs from this album were released: "Together" and "Lies". DJ BoBo's success continued. In the spring of 2000, he received another trophy at the World Music Awards for the sixth time in a row. He was again Switzerland's "Best Selling Artist of the Year".
With help from his co-producer Axel Breitung, BoBo finished his next album, Planet Colors, which came out on February 5, 2001. The first song, "What a Feeling", featured American singer Irene Cara. It was a cover version of Cara's original hit Flashdance... What a Feeling. It reached number 2 in Switzerland, number 11 in Austria, and number 3 in Germany. Two more songs followed: "Hard to Say I'm Sorry" and "Colors of Life". BoBo's "Planet Colors – The Show" tour was very popular, with over one million people watching it across Europe.
Celebrating 10 Years: 2001 to 2005
To celebrate his 10 years in music, DJ BoBo made a new version of Kool and the Gang's "Celebration". He updated it with modern sounds. This song was part of his collection album, also called Celebration, which featured his past hits. The album Celebration, released in April 2002, included re-recorded versions of his hits. Many famous German artists joined him, like No Angels on "Where is Your Love", Melanie Thornton on "Love of My Life", Emilia on "Everybody", and A Touch of Class on "Together".
In 2002, DJ BoBo was named Switzerland's Best Selling Recording Artist at the World Music Awards for the seventh time. Also, BoBo and Axel Breitung were recognized as the "Best Producers of 2001" at the Echo awards.
DJ BoBo's next album, Visions, released in February 2003, showed a new side to his music. Besides his usual dance sounds, it had more acoustic elements. For example, in songs like "Angel" and "Do You Remember", guitars were used instead of synthesizers. The album Visions reached number 3 in Switzerland and became a Platinum record there. In 2003, BoBo received another World Music Award for being Switzerland's Best Selling Artist of the year.
One of BoBo's most successful songs was "Chihuahua". It was first released in 2002 and then re-released across Europe. Coca-Cola in Spain asked him to create a catchy song for their new campaign. The song was finished in just ten days. "Chihuahua" quickly reached number 1 on the Spanish music chart. The song eventually became number 1 in Switzerland and France. It earned a Platinum award in Switzerland and a Diamond award in France for selling over one million copies.
Eurovision and More Awards: 2005 to 2008
BoBo's next album, Pirates of Dance, was released in February 2005. It included two songs called "Pirates of Dance" and "Amazing Life". The album went straight to number 1 in Switzerland. BoBo and his team started the Pirates of Dance Tour in April 2005. They performed in Switzerland, Germany, and Poland, and ended with two concerts in Disneyland Paris. In 2005, DJ BoBo became Switzerland's Best Selling Recording Artist of the Year for the 10th time.
BoBo released his greatest hits album in 2006. It had new versions of some of his old songs and some original ones. The song "Secrets of Love", released before the album, was a pop-dance duet with 1980s star Sandra. The music video for the song was filmed at Disney Resort Paris. His greatest hits collection earned BoBo a Gold award in Switzerland.
On October 11, 2006, DJ BoBo announced that he wanted to represent Switzerland at the Eurovision Song Contest 2007. In the past, Switzerland's entry was not always a Swiss person. For example, Canadian singer Celine Dion won the Eurovision Song Contest 1988 representing Switzerland. DJ BoBo said that it was a shame for Swiss money to fund a foreign act.
In December 2006, the Swiss TV council chose BoBo out of over 200 people to represent Switzerland in Helsinki, Finland. Some people criticized this choice, saying it was not fair to less famous Swiss artists. On February 21, 2007, DJ BoBo showed the song and video for the contest: "Vampires Are Alive". Even though many thought he would win, the song did not make it past the semi-final on May 12. It finished twentieth out of 28 semi-finalists.
DJ BoBo released his next album, Vampires, on May 11, 2007. It reached number 2 on the Swiss album chart. The first song, "Vampires Are Alive", reached number 3 in Switzerland and was also popular in Finland. Two other songs from the album, "We Gotta Hold On" and "Because of You", were also released.
In 2007, BoBo was chosen to sing the official song for the 2008 UEFA European Football Championship. On his website, BoBo let fans vote for which song would be the official one. "Olé Olé" was chosen over "Let the Games Begin". On April 11, 2008, "Olé Olé" was released as a single. It came with an album called Olé Olé – Party. This album had five new songs, nine party hits, a medley of songs, a new version of BoBo's hit "Everybody", and a new version of "Vampires Are Alive".
Recent Years: 2008 to Present
DJ BoBo's album Fantasy was released on February 26, 2010. It reached number 2 in Switzerland and earned a Gold award for selling over 15,000 copies. The two songs released from this album were "Superstar" and "This Is My Time".
A new album from BoBo, called Dancing Las Vegas, came out on November 25, 2011. This album has 13 songs and comes with a DVD. The DVD has six parts, including the music video for the song "Everybody's Gonna Dance".
BoBo released another album called Circus on January 10, 2014. This was followed by Mystorial in 2016 and KaleidoLuna in 2018. Like his previous albums, Circus and Mystorial reached the Top 5 in Switzerland. KaleidoLuna reached number 9.
Helping Others
DJ BoBo became a National Ambassador Against Hunger for the United Nations World Food Programme in October 2006. He was the first Swiss celebrity to take on this important role. He also took part in the 2006 Geneva Walk the World event, which helps raise awareness about hunger.
Music Albums
Studio Albums
- Dance with Me (1993)
- There Is a Party (1994)
- Just for You (1995)
- World in Motion (1996)
- Magic (1998)
- Level 6 (1999)
- The Ultimate Megamix '99 (1999)
- Planet Colors (2001)
- Celebration (2002)
- Visions (2003)
- Live in Concert (2003)
- Pirates of Dance (2005)
- Greatest Hits (2006)
- Sweet Christmas (2006)
- Vampires (2007)
- Olé Olé - The Party (2008)
- Fantasy (2010)
- Dancing Las Vegas (2011)
- Reloaded (2013)
- Circus (2014)
- Mystorial (2016)
- KaleidoLuna (2018)
- Remixes & Unreleased Tracks (2020)
- Evolut30n (2022)
See also
In Spanish: DJ BoBo para niños
