In an old factory hall, hoodies, T-shirts and leather jackets are lined up neatly, most of them dark and slightly loose-fitting. Backpacks, license plate holders or posters can be found between the items of clothing. It could be one of the many hip fashion stores in Berlin – if it weren’t for one special detail: the logo of the band Rammstein is emblazoned on all products.
The factory building in Berlin’s Pankow district is only open every few weeks, the next time in July, and then only for four hours. But then the rush is regularly large, an expression of how strong the attraction of the band and how lucrative the Rammstein product is. All in all, no other German band has been as commercially successful as Rammstein since it was founded in 1994. The music group earns money on the scale of a small medium-sized company. According to estimates, it has earned more than 200 million US dollars from concerts alone in the past three years . If you put multipliers on it, Rammstein could be a billion mark. The economic success should therefore be one of the reasons why the band is so close together – although after the massive allegations against frontman Till Lindemann they are in the biggest crisis since their foundation.
Much about the band is opaque, the business is part of it. It is therefore not possible to say exactly how much and how exactly Rammstein makes money with his music. With the help of indicators and estimates, however, a lot of information can be gathered.
In the commercial register there are references to at least five companies that are directly or indirectly connected to Frontman Lindemann. The most important company is Rammstein GbR based in Berlin. All six band members are also shareholders there. The same applies to Rammstein Merchandising OHG and Rundumschlag Management
The last official annual report of one of these companies, Rammstein Konzert GmbH, dates from 2007 – and shows almost a zero-sum game. Income and expenses roughly balanced out – apparently also because Rammstein spent most of the year in the studio.
What happened after that is largely based on estimates. According to various media reports, the total revenue should have been between 400 million and 1 billion euros. In the industry, Rammstein is the undisputed top earner in German show business, and that to this day. Even globally, only five other bands are currently said to be generating higher sales, including superstars such as Elton John and Coldplay. According to industry experts, Rammstein makes the highest profits with concerts. But in contrast to many younger artists, albums still play a relevant role at Rammstein. This is due to the tendentially older target audience, who actually buy the records and not just stream them digitally. There are also numerous solo activities by the individual musicians.
It is known that several band members own real estate in Berlin. Frontman Till Lindemann, for example, threw the popular Café Niesen out of one of its houses in Berlin’s Gleimviertel five years ago. Left-wing activists then accused him of promoting gentrification in the city. Some band members are also said to live in their own properties in Berlin-Pankow.
Lindemann has also published two volumes of poetry, which are published by Verlag Kiepenheuer
But it is questionable whether the fans will actually turn away from Rammstein. At the first Germany concert in Munich, the mood among the fans seemed to be good on Wednesday evening. Many defended Lindemann, anyway one should not judge hastily, it was said. A group of demonstrators in front of the Munich Olympic Stadium was smiled at and insulted. “It almost seems like some of the fans are pro-rape just to be against the protesters,” a viewer told Stern. That, in turn, could play into Rammstein’s cards. After all, spite has always been a good sales driver.
Note: This text first appeared here at Capital.de.
