Jack White (music producer) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jack White
Background information
Birth name	Horst Nußbaum
Born	(1940-09-02)2 September 1940 Cologne, Gau Cologne-Aachen, Germany
Died	16 October 2025(2025-10-16) (aged 85) Berlin, Germany
Genres	Pop German folk
Occupation(s)	Producer singer
Years active	1964–2014
Labels	White Records JWP AG Gloriella Music
Association football career Position(s) Midfielder Senior career* Years Team Apps (Gls) 1961–1963 FC Viktoria Köln 17 (1) 1963–1964 FK Pirmasens 18 (1) 1964–1965 TSC Zweibrücken 11 (5) 1965–1966 PSV Eindhoven 2 (1) 1966–1976 Tennis Borussia Berlin *Club domestic league appearances and goals

Jack White (born Horst Nußbaum; 2 September 1940 – 16 October 2025) was a famous German composer, music producer, and former footballer. He was born in Cologne, Germany.

Jack White loved both football and music from a young age. He first chose to play football professionally for six years. Later, he played at an amateur level while starting his successful music career. As a singer, his songs were popular in Germany and other German-speaking countries. However, he became most famous for producing music for international artists.

During his music career, Jack White created 25 of his own records. He also helped with 2512 other records, including producing 870 of them. Some of the well-known artists he worked with include Laura Branigan (for songs like "Gloria" and "Self Control"), Barry Manilow, and David Hasselhoff ("Looking for Freedom"). He changed his name to Jack White to make it easier to work with English-speaking stars and their managers.

Jack White's productions sold millions of copies around the world. He won several European music awards for his own work and his impact on music. These awards included the German Golden Tuning Fork and the RTL Group Lion. He also started several record labels, such as White Records and Gloriella Music, which still operate today. Jack White officially retired from performing in 2014.

Jack White's Football Journey

Jack White, then known as Horst Nußbaum, playing for PSV Eindhoven in 1965.

Before becoming a music star, Jack White started his professional football career at age 20. He played for FC Viktoria Köln from 1961 to 1966. After six years, he decided to play at an amateur level for Tennis Borussia Berlin for ten more years. This allowed him to focus on his growing music career.

White played for five different clubs during his football journey. He mostly played as a right-midfielder or right-back. He first joined FC Viktoria Köln after being scouted by coach Hennes Weisweiler. He played there for two seasons.

He then moved to FK Pirmasens for the 1963–64 season. Here, he played the most games and scored the most goals for a single club. After this, he transferred to TSC Zweibrücken, which is when he also released his first song as a musician.

Jack White finished his professional football career at PSV Eindhoven in the Netherlands. He continued his amateur career at Tennis Borussia Berlin for a decade. From 1992 to 1995, he even served as the club's president. During this time, he helped the club financially. He hoped to bring them back to the top German football league. The club faced challenges because of how Germany was divided after World War II. This meant they couldn't play in the top national league at the time.

Football Statistics

Jack White's Music Career

Jack White started as a singer in Germany in the late 1960s. He found local success performing in bars. At the same time, he began producing and writing music for other German artists. His first big hit as a producer was "Schöne Maid" for Tony Marshall in 1971.

As his fame grew in Germany, he started working with international artists. He became a well-known producer. He decided to change his name to Jack White to make it easier to work in the international music scene. He produced many famous songs for artists like Laura Branigan, including "Gloria" (1982) and "Self Control" (1984). He also worked with Jermaine Jackson and Pia Zadora on "When the Rain Begins to Fall" (1984). Other artists he collaborated with include Paul Anka, Barry Manilow, and David Hasselhoff.

In the 1980s, Jack White worked closely with David Hasselhoff. He produced four albums for Hasselhoff, with the most popular song being "Looking for Freedom". This song became very successful in America and Germany. It was even used in protests around the Berlin Wall. In 1989, Hasselhoff performed the song on top of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin. The song remains popular in German-speaking countries because of its important message about freedom.

In 1984, White founded his own record label, White Records. He continued to write and produce music for German and English-speaking artists through this label. He also led another company, Jack White Productions (JWP AG), for a while. In 2012, a Munich-based record label called Telamo bought White Records. Today, Telamo works with independent German musicians to create new music.

In 2008, Jack White started a new label called Gloriella Music. He continued to produce and write for artists there. After he retired in 2014, he sold the distribution rights to Sony Music. However, he remained involved with Gloriella as an executive.

In January 2014, Jack White announced he would perform one last time before retiring. In May, he gave his final public performance at a festival hosted by Florian Silbereisen. He played his own songs, covers of his productions, and a final "Last Song." Since then, he officially stopped performing. Throughout his career, Jack White created 25 of his own records and contributed to 2513 others.

Jack White's Music Style

As a producer, Jack White worked with many international pop artists. He was especially known for synth-pop, a popular style in the 1980s. This music used synthesizers and new music production software. Many early producers like White helped create the foundations of electronic dance music.

In Germany, White's music often followed a similar pop style. However, his early success came from writing folk-style songs. These folk songs, like "Schöne Maid," are still some of his most popular in Germany.

Jack White's personal music also had a German folk style. He wrote most of his own songs early in his career. He didn't use synthesizers or software much in his own music. For example, his album Jack White at the Piano featured only his piano and voice.

Jack White's Family Life

Jack White had a family with his wife, Rafaella. They had two children together: a son, Maximilian Noah, born in March 2019, and a daughter, Angelina Melody, born on 30 October 2023. He also had three other children from earlier marriages.

Jack White passed away on 16 October 2025, at the age of 85, in his Berlin apartment.

Awards and Achievements

Jack White's production work earned him many Music Recording Certification awards. These awards recognized his high sales in different countries, for both German and English music. The European market gave him the most awards.

Production Awards

• Branigan (Laura Branigan) – 2 Gold awards (1 in America, 1 in Canada)
• Branigan 2 (Laura Branigan) – 1 Gold award in America
• Self Control (Laura Branigan) – 2 Platinum (Canada and US), 2 Gold (Germany and Hong Kong), 1 Silver (United Kingdom)
• Crazy for You (David Hasselhoff) – 6 Platinum Awards (2 in Austria, 1 in Germany, 3 in Switzerland)
• David (David Hasselhoff) – 4 Platinum Awards (2 in Austria, 1 in Germany, 1 in Switzerland)
• Everybody Sunshine (David Hasselhoff) – 3 Gold (1 in Austria, 1 in Germany, and 1 in Switzerland)
• Looking for Freedom (David Hasselhoff) – 5 Platinum (1 in Austria and Germany, 3 in Switzerland)

Personal Awards

Jack White won the Golden Tuning Fork (Goldene Stimmgabel) in 1992. This German music award recognized high record sales for his album Everybody Sunshine. He also received an honorary Lion award from the RTL Group. This was for his important work as a producer in the European music industry.