Deutschland (song)

For the German national anthem, see Deutschlandlied.

"Deutschland"
Single cover featuring actress Ruby Commey
Single by Rammstein
from the album Untitled
B-side"Richard Z. Kruspe Remix"
Released28 March 2019
Recorded2018
StudioLa Fabrique (Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, France)
Length5:22
9:23 (with long ending credit / outro)
LabelUniversal
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Olsen Involtini
  • Rammstein
Rammstein singles chronology
"Mein Herz brennt"
(2012) 		"Deutschland"
(2019) 		"Radio"
(2019)
Music video
"Deutschland" on YouTube

"Deutschland" ("Germany") is a song by German Neue Deutsche Härte band Rammstein. Released as the lead single from their untitled seventh studio album on 28 March 2019, it was their first new music since the song "Mein Land" in 2011.

The song became Rammstein's second No. 1 single in Germany after "Pussy" in 2009.[1] It was also a No. 1 hit in Hungary and Switzerland, reached the top 5 in Austria and Finland, and was nominated for the 2019 Kerrang! Award for Best Single.[2]

Music video

The song's music video was directed by Specter Berlin and was released on 28 March 2019 at 18:00 CET,[3] following a 35-second teaser trailer on 26 March.[4] The lengthy music video sparked controversy; its dark, violent, and macabre style—typical of the band's aesthetic—features various events from German history,[5][6] including Roman times, the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest, the Middle Ages, witch hunting, the November Revolution, the Golden Twenties, Nazi book burnings, the Hindenburg disaster, the First and Second World Wars, the Holocaust, the Weimar Republic, the Red Army Faction, and the division of the country into West and East Germany; it also features science fiction scenes set in outer space, cannibalism in which people were eating Germania, the personification of Germany, and a bank robbery featuring lead singer Till Lindemann crossdressing as Ulrike Meinhof. The black German actress Ruby Commey appears as Germania throughout the video. The song also twice uses the line "Deutschland, Deutschland über allen" ("Germany, Germany above everyone") as a reference to "Deutschland, Deutschland über alles" ("Germany, Germany above everything") from the Deutschlandlied's first stanza. The latter has been adopted as the national anthem of post-war Germany, only singing its third stanza because of such wording dubbed nationalistic.

The ending credits feature a piano version of the band's 2001 single "Sonne" performed by Clemens Pötzsch featured on the album XXI - Klavier. The introduction features the song called "The Beast" from the Sicario soundtrack by Jóhann Jóhannsson.

Music video symbolism

Regarding the use of the extreme polarities of symbolism involving the depiction of Nazism and the Holocaust, Oxford professor Alexandra Lloyd has stated: "The most obviously shocking scene references the Holocaust and the Nazi period. Four members of the band, in the striped uniforms of camp inmates, wait at the gallows, about to be hanged. They wear the cloth emblems used to identify their ‘crimes’: a pink triangle for homosexual prisoners, a yellow star for Jewish prisoners, a red and yellow star for Jewish political prisoners."[6]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Deutschland"5:23
2."Deutschland" (RMX by Richard Z. Kruspe)5:46

Charts

Weekly charts

Weekly chart performance for "Deutschland"
Chart (2019) Peak
position
Australia Digital Tracks (ARIA)[7] 39
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[8] 4
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[9] 23
Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Wallonia)[10] 23
CIS Airplay (TopHit)[11] 4
Czech Republic (Singles Digitál Top 100)[12] 11
Estonia (Eesti Tipp-40)[13] 20
Euro Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[14] 1
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[15] 4
France (SNEP)[16] 100
Germany (GfK)[1] 1
Hungary (Single Top 40)[17] 1
Hungary (Stream Top 40)[18] 11
Ireland (IRMA)[19] 96
Latvia (LAIPA)[20] 13
Lithuania (AGATA)[21] 36
Mexico Ingles Airplay (Billboard)[22] 34
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[23] 74
New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[24] 27
Scotland (OCC)[25] 29
Slovakia (Singles Digitál Top 100)[26] 20
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[27] 44
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[28] 1
UK Singles (OCC)[29] 98
UK Rock & Metal (OCC)[30] 4
US Digital Song Sales (Billboard)[31] 43
US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[32] 14
2023 weekly chart performance for "Deutschland"
Chart (2023) Peak
position
Lithuania (AGATA)[33] 20

Year-end charts

Chart (2019) Position
Germany (Official German Charts)[34] 20
Hungary (Single Top 40)[35] 23
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[36] 86

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Austria (IFPI Austria)[37] Platinum 30,000‡
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[38] Platinum 40,000‡
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[39] Gold 45,000‡
France (SNEP)[40] Gold 100,000‡
Germany (BVMI)[41] 3× Gold 600,000‡
Poland (ZPAV)[42] 2× Platinum 100,000‡
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[43] Gold 30,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[44] Silver 200,000‡
Streaming
Sweden (GLF)[45] Gold 4,000,000†

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
† Streaming-only figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region Date Format Label Catalogue number Ref.
Various 28 March 2019
Universal — [46]
Europe 12 April 2019 7-inch 7761888 [47]
CD 7755354 [48]
North America 30 April 2019 7-inch TBA [49]

References

  1. ^ a b "Rammstein – Deutschland" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 5 April 2019.
  2. ^ Kerrang!, issue 1774, May 2019, page 8.
  3. ^ "Rammstein – Deutschland (Official Video)". YouTube. 28 March 2019. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  4. ^ "XXVIII.III.MMXIX. – Deutschland Preview". YouTube. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  5. ^ "Rammsteins bizarre reis door Duitse geschiedenis".
  6. ^ a b Lloyd, Alexandra (18 May 2020). "Rammstein Deutschland: the song and video explained". Metal Hammer. Future plc. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  7. ^ "ARIA Australian Top 40 Digital Tracks" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. 8 April 2019. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  8. ^ "Rammstein – Deutschland" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
  9. ^ "Rammstein – Deutschland" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 5 April 2019.
  10. ^ "Rammstein – Deutschland" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved 5 April 2019.
  11. ^ Rammstein — Deutschland. TopHit. Retrieved 8 July 2019.
  12. ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 14. týden 2019 in the date selector. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
  13. ^ "EESTI TIPP-40: Official Estonian Singles Chart". Eesti Ekspress. Retrieved 31 May 2019.
  14. ^ "Rammstein Chart History (Euro Digital Song Sales)". Billboard.
  15. ^ "Rammstein: Deutschland" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  16. ^ "Rammstein – Deutschland" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
  17. ^ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Single (track) Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
  18. ^ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Stream Top 40 slágerlista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
  19. ^ "Irish-charts.com – Discography Rammstein". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  20. ^ "Mūzikas Patēriņa Tops/ 14. nedēļa" (in Latvian). LAIPA. Archived from the original on 10 October 2019. Retrieved 28 November 2019.
  21. ^ "Savaitės klausomiausi (TOP 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. 5 April 2019. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
  22. ^ "Rammstein Album & Song Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
  23. ^ "Rammstein – Deutschland" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 5 April 2019.
  24. ^ "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 8 April 2019. Retrieved 5 April 2019.
  25. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  26. ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 14. týden 2019 in the date selector. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  27. ^ "Rammstein – Deutschland". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  28. ^ "Rammstein – Deutschland". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
  29. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  30. ^ "Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  31. ^ "Rammstein Chart History (Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
  32. ^ "Rammstein Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  33. ^ "2023 21-os savaitės klausomiausi (Top 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. 26 May 2023. Retrieved 26 May 2023.
  34. ^ "Top 100 Jahrescharts 2019". GfK Entertainment (in German). mtv.de. Retrieved 6 December 2019.
  35. ^ "Single Top 100 - eladási darabszám alapján - 2019". Mahasz. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
  36. ^ "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 2019 – hitparade.ch". Hung Medien. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
  37. ^ "Austrian single certifications – Rammstein – Deutschland" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
  38. ^ "Brazilian single certifications – Rammstein – Deutschland" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil. Retrieved 11 July 2024.
  39. ^ "Danish single certifications – Rammstein – Deutschland". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
  40. ^ "French single certifications – Rammstein – Deutschland" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  41. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Rammstein; 'Deutschland')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 18 January 2023.
  42. ^ "Wyróżnienia – Platynowe płyty CD - Archiwum - Przyznane w 2022 roku" (in Polish). Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 2 March 2022.
  43. ^ "Spanish single certifications – Rammstein – Deutschland". El portal de Música. Productores de Música de España. Retrieved 24 December 2024.
  44. ^ "British single certifications – Rammstein – Deutschland". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 25 June 2024.
  45. ^ "Sverigetopplistan – Rammstein" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
  46. ^ "Deutschland | Rammstein". Qobuz. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
  47. ^ "Images for Rammstein - Deutschland (Vinyl)". Discogs. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
  48. ^ "Images for Rammstein - Deutschland (CD)". Discogs. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
  49. ^ "Rammstein 7" Vinyl "Deutschland"". Rammstein (official website). Archived from the original on 15 April 2019. Retrieved 15 April 2019.