Nico Suave
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About
Nico Suave (born 1979) is a German rapper from Menden. He grew up in Menden with his fraternal twin brother and developed an early interest in U.S. hip-hop. He began rapping at the age of 16 and, influenced by Ferris MC, Flowin Immo (then of Freaks Association Bremen), and Fünf Sterne deluxe, started writing German-language lyrics. At 14, he performed his first song, "Tap The Bottle" by the Young Black Teenagers, at a youth center, winning a mini-playback contest. At 16, he co-founded the group Provinzaroma with Dabru Tack and Kraans de Lutin, performing at local youth centers. The only released track from this period, "Raubkopie," appeared on the sampler "Innenseite" from the Bremen label OP23. In 1997, Nico Suave left his job as a postal worker to focus on music. He gained recognition in 1998 with his contribution to "Sternzeichen Krebs" by Eins Zwo on their album "Gefährliches Halbwissen." Dendemann, also from Menden, introduced him to Eins Zwo. Following this, he toured Germany with Dendemann and DJ Rabauke. In Kiel, he met DJ Sparc, and in February 2000, they performed together for the first time. After moving to Hamburg, he released his first maxi single, "Münchhausen ’94," produced by Ill Will, and appeared on albums by Deichkind and DJ Friction. In April 2001, his debut album "Suave" was released. The single "Vergesslich" received airplay on MTV and entered the airplay charts, also spending two weeks on the German singles chart. In June 2001, as part of the "Hamburg City Allstars," he released the single "Vorsprechtermin" with Sleepwalker, which reached number 44 on the German singles chart and remained for nine weeks. Following the decline of the German hip-hop boom and restructuring at Universal Music, his major label contract ended. Nico Suave currently releases music under the Berlin label No Limits. His later albums were produced with support from the Bock auf’n Beat collective and feature collaborations with artists including Blumentopf and the Beginner. During the 2000s, he toured with Blumentopf and recorded several collaborative tracks with members of the band. In April 2007, he released "Suave & Friends," produced with the young Dortmund producer The Gunna. The album featured contributions from Denyo, Blumentopf, Harris, Franky Kubrick, and others. The video for the track "Kool," featuring Blumentopf, reached number five in the TRL Top Ten charts. In 2009, Nico Suave performed in Australia and New Zealand with Roger Rekless on behalf of the Goethe-Institut, conducting workshops for students in cities including Melbourne, Brisbane, Bundaberg, Hobart, Adelaide, Canberra, and Sydney. Together with NKSN, Buket, and EMY, he participated with the song "Hallo Welt" in the German preselection for the Eurovision Song Contest 2022, "Germany 12 Points." In 2024, Nico Suave released the first two singles, "Feuer" and "Dünnes Eis," from his upcoming album.