“Elke” is one of the biggest cult songs by the punk band “Die Ärzte” from Berlin. Frontman Farin Urlaub (58) revealed during a concert that the rockers will no longer play the song live. Reason: body shaming.
Berlin – Is that up-to-date or exaggerated? Since 1993, “Die Ärzte” (more than eight million records sold) have been part of German cultural heritage. The punk band from Berlin made their big breakthrough with the album “Planet Punk” (1993). Songs like “Hurra” or “Schunder-Song” caught my ear and never got out until today.
Because of body shaming: “Die Ärzte” no longer play their cult song
But now singer Farin Urlaub revealed during a concert in Berlin that the band will never play their cult song “Elke” (1988) live again. A shock for the fans of Farin Urlaub, Bela B and Rodrigo Gonzalez. On Twitter, a user writes, “The ‘doctors’ were asked by the audience to play Elke.
Frontman Farin Urlaub answered: “No, folks. Elke is fatshaming and misogynous. We don’t play stuff like that anymore, that’s in the last millennium.” To understand: misogynous means misogynist.
“Elke, the fat Elke”: The lyrics are so misogynistic
With the announcement not to play the cult song “Elke” anymore, the doctors should cause discussions among their fans. “I used to like this chapel,” responds a fan on Twitter to Farin Urlaub’s announcement. However, the lines of the 3.22-minute song pack a punch and are definitely inappropriate in 2022.
We met, alone at her house’ She looked much, much fatter than in the photo I put my arms around her, that means I tried I fell into her fatty tissue like a ravine She’s a real hunk, 3 meters in cubes It looks like turkey breast with cucumber in aspic
What certainly not all fans of the Berlin band know: According to bild.de, Farin Urlaub wrote the song himself in 1988. According to legend, a female fan had stalked the band, even including pictures of herself in letters. So Farin Urlaub knew it was an overweight woman. His answer to the love nerves: the calorie swatter of the same name against that Elke,” says bild.de.
The cult song “Elke” is not the only title that “Die Ärzte” have removed from their program. “Claudia” is about the relationship between a woman and her shepherd dog. “Geschwisterliebe” is also no longer performed live.
The Doctors: Accidentally opened up a whole new audience
With their celebrated unplugged concert for the album “Rock’n’Roll-Realschule”, the Berlin punk band Die Ärzte, according to their own assessment, significantly expanded their fan base at the time. “In retrospect, we unintentionally opened up a whole new audience,” said guitarist Farin Urlaub of the German Press Agency. Sources used: bild.de, twitter.com, dpa
