Kevin Russell

Kevin Russell (2019)

Chart positions Explanation of the data

Albums

Faith and Will (with Veritas Maximus)   DE 5 06/13/2014 (8 weeks)   AT 13 06/13/2014 (3 weeks)   CH 29 06/08/2014 (1 week)

Kevin Richard Russell (born January 12, 1964 in Hamburg ) is a German singer . He became known as the lead singer of the rock band Böhse Onkelz , to which he belonged from 1980 to 2005 and has been back since 2014 after the band's reunion. He is also the lead singer and songwriter of the band Veritas Maximus, founded in 2012 .

Life

Kevin Russell (2015)

family

Kevin Richard Russell grew up as the youngest of three children (a sister and a brother). His British father was working as a pilot for Lufthansa at the time , his mother came from Hamburg. According to Russell, she was addicted to alcohol , which had a negative impact on family relationships. Russell attended secondary school at times , left it without a degree and finally tried over a vocational elementary school year in an electrical college to obtain the secondary school certificate.

In 1977 he and his family moved from Hamburg to Hösbach . There he met Peter Schorowsky and Stephan Weidner , with whom he would later found the rock band Böhse Onkelz . In 1983 he began training as a ship mechanic , which he did not complete. From 1986 he worked as a tattoo artist , in 1999 his son was born.

In 1990 his best friend, Andreas "Trimmi" Trimborn, died in Russell's arms after being stabbed by a knife in a pub. The Böhsen Onkelz later dedicated, among other things, the song Only the best die young to the deceased .

On June 27, 2015, just a few hours before the start of the concert at the Hockenheimring, Russell married his long-time girlfriend Simone.

Drug problems

Russell suffered from drug and alcohol problems for many years . This problem was also raised in some songs such as B. Do you have longing for the needle , H or suffering and have you also mentioned it in the official biography ? In January 2006 Russell was treated as an inpatient at the Mainz University Hospital ; the band cited a severe drug relapse as the reason for this. A bacterial infection developed , which is why he had to undergo brain surgery and was temporarily in an artificial coma. According to his own statements, he often drank “four and a half liters of Jägermeister ” every day and consumed up to “20 grams of 70 percent cocaine ”.

First serious traffic accident

On November 16, 2000, Russell had a serious car accident when he overtook two other cars at 9:30 p.m. in a new Audi S8 in the Taunus on a wet road in a sharp hairpin bend at significantly excessive speed, and lost control of his vehicle fell down an embankment. The fire brigade then had to cut the victim out of his destroyed vehicle. Russell suffered a fracture of the femur in the accident , a laceration to the head, whiplash and a severe concussion . Because of the accident and the subsequent rehabilitation period for the Onkelz singer, the 20 Years Böhse Onkelz anniversary concert originally scheduled for autumn 2000 had to be postponed to March 3, 2001, which was not in the ball sports hall as planned , but in the festival hall in Frankfurt took place on the Main. Singer Kevin Russell could only complete the anniversary concert with the help of strong painkillers and impaired walking. After taking the prescription pain medication, Russell became addicted to hard drugs like heroin and cocaine again.

Second serious traffic accident

On New Year's Eve 2009, Kevin Russell caused a traffic accident with two seriously injured men under the influence of drugs at 232 km / h in an Audi R8 on the A66 near Frankfurt am Main and then escaped on foot . On July 1, 2010, charges were brought against Russell. On October 4, 2010, he was sentenced by the Frankfurt am Main regional court to a prison term of two years and three months for negligent bodily harm , endangering road traffic and escaping an accident. His driving license was revoked for four years . Both the public prosecutor's office and the accessory prosecutor initiated an appeal against the judgment at the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) ; the prosecution later withdrew its appeal. In a decision of March 7, 2011, the BGH dismissed Russell's appeal, which meant he was sentenced to two years and three months in prison. He was served a corresponding order to enter detention in May 2011, but he did not take it. Russell's attorney filed an appeal on June 24, 2011, to classify him as incapacitated due to his health situation. On July 11, 2011, the 3rd Criminal Senate rejected the request for a stay of detention. The judges argued that Russell would even receive improved treatment, as the constant surveillance in detention meant that medical responses could be faster than in freedom.

The two occupants of the Opel, which was destroyed and caught fire in the accident, were temporarily in mortal danger and both suffered severe permanent damage and trauma: The 20-year-old driver suffered burns, a liver hemorrhage, a ruptured spleen , a kidney injury and a skull and brain , among other things -Trauma with persistent memory impairment like this. Among other things, the 22-year-old passenger suffered burns that partially disfigured his face, and three fingers had to be amputated. It was reported that Russell laughed and made faces during the trial that were interpreted as mocking the victims. In November 2012, a handwritten letter from Russell was published in which, among other things, he expressed his regret to the accident victims.

Russell began his sentence in August 2011 and was immediately transferred to the prison hospital due to his health. In December 2011 he left prison and went to a therapy facility, which regularly informed the judiciary about the course of therapy.

Others

According to Russell, he is a British citizen.

Musical career

At an appearance with the Böhse Onkelz (2019)

Böhse Onkelz

In 1980 he founded the rock band Böhse Onkelz together with Stephan Weidner and Peter Schorowsky . He was the band's lead singer from its founding until its dissolution in 2005 and has been the lead singer of the band since it was re-founded in 2014 .

Solo career

After the preliminary end of the Böhsen Onkelz in 2005, Kevin Russell would have been the singer of a band project called Puritanzz and Pioneers with Matthias "Gonzo" Röhr as guitarist and Jason Newsted , who plucked the four-string of the metal band Metallica from 1986 to 2001 , as bassist should. However, the pertinent plans failed because of Kevin Russell's cancellation of the project.

In the piece Our Stadium - Our Rules , published on May 15, 2006 by the band Nordend Antistars , Russell can be heard as a background singer for the first time since his coma.

Russell was actually supposed to record a song by the band Eschenbach , produced by Stephan Weidner. However, shortly after the announcement, the band decided against it because they didn't want the record to be bought just because of that. In the end, the song was recorded by Stephan Weidner.

Most recently Russell was on August 15, 2009 at Outer Limits , a festival in Hofheim in Lower Franconia , together with the cover band KOMA for some songs. That was the second time since the Böhse Onkelz dissolved, after his appearance at the Onkelz Non Stop Festival in Geiselwind in June 2009, that Russell performed songs from his own band on a stage.

On December 21, 2012, Russell announced on his website that he wanted to get back on stage. His first solo concert took place on March 9, 2013 in Geiselwind .

Veritas Maximus

Russell has been the singer of the band Veritas Maximus since 2012 . The first album called Glaube und Wille was released on May 30, 2014 and reached number 5 in the German charts. The band's name comes from Latin and is supposed to mean “the highest truth”, but it is grammatically incorrect and should actually be veritas maxima .

Another album has been announced, but details on the release are still open.

Discography

Böhse Onkelz

→ Main article : Böhse Onkelz / discography

Veritas Maximus

• 2014: Faith and Will

Web links

Commons : Kevin Russell  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Charts DE Charts AT Charts CH
2. ↑ Kevin Russel: Böhse-Onkelz singer breaks his silence Faz.de from October 1, 2010
3. ↑ Kritsanarat Khunkham: Böhse-Onkelz-singer: "Xenophobic, brutal and violent" . In: THE WORLD . January 7, 2010 ( welt.de [accessed December 30, 2017]).
4. ^ Before the concert: Onkelz singer is getting married at the Hockenheimring! mannheim24.de, June 28, 2015, accessed June 30, 2015.
5. ↑ "I drank four and a half liters of Jägermeister a day" . In: Focus Online , May 13, 2013, accessed April 27, 2019.
6. ↑ Gonzo: The official and authorized biography of Matthias Röhr . Autobiography written with co-authors Dennis Diel and Marco Matthes, Hannibal Verlag , Höfen , 1st edition, November 2019. P. 249 f. + 254
7. ↑ Kevin's first serious accident on the official homepage of the Böhsen Onkelz in the Timeline section , www.onkelz.de, accessed on April 15, 2020
8. ↑ Gonzo: The official and authorized biography of Matthias Röhr . Autobiography written with co-authors Dennis Diel and Marco Matthes, Hannibal Verlag , Höfen , 1st edition, November 2019. p. 273
9. ↑ Stern.de: Böhse-Onkelz-singer has to go to jail . Retrieved March 7, 2011
10. ↑ Charges against Böhse-Onkelz-Sänger ( memento of the original from July 4, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . RP Online , July 1, 2010. 
11. ↑ Bad awakening for Böhse-Onkelz singers . In: Focus online , October 4, 2010. Retrieved October 29, 2013.
12. ↑ Böhse-Onkelz-Singer has to go to prison for over two years . In: Der Tagesspiegel , October 4, 2010. Retrieved October 4, 2010.
13. ↑ Hessischer Rundfunk: Report on hr-online.de ( Memento of the original from March 10, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Retrieved March 7, 2011. 
14. ↑ Kevin Russell defends himself against being imprisoned . n24.de. Retrieved October 29, 2013.
15. ↑ Hessischer Rundfunk: Complaint rejected - Onkelz singer has to go to custody  ( page can no longer be accessed , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
16. ↑ Die Welt: Victims' statements shock "Böhse Onkelz" fans , September 24, 2010, accessed on September 29, 2012
17. ↑ Focus: Hit and Run: Böhse-Onkelz-singer in court , September 24, 2010, accessed on September 29, 2012
18. ↑ n-tv: "You made me a cripple": "Böhser Onkel" in court , September 24, 2010, accessed on September 29, 2012
19. ↑ Spiegel: Kevin Russell has to serve prison sentence , July 11, 2011, accessed on September 29, 2012
20. ↑ Star: Kevin Russell Must Be Behind Bars , October 4, 2010, accessed September 29, 2012
21. ↑ Fan page of the band Böhse Onkelz: http://onkelz.de/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/statement.jpg ( Memento from January 20, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) , November 2, 2012, accessed on September 9 , 2013 . November 2012
22. ↑ Focus: Böhse-Onkelz-Singer: Kevin Russell lands in the prison hospital , August 8, 2010, accessed on September 29, 2012
23. ^ Spiegel: Release from prison: Böhse-Onkelz-singer in drug therapy , April 10, 2012, accessed on September 29, 2012
24. ↑ Hessischer Rundfunk: Report on hr-online.de, accessed on April 19, 2011  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
25. ↑ Gonzo: The official and authorized biography of Matthias Röhr . Autobiography written with co-authors Dennis Diel and Marco Matthes, Hannibal Verlag , Höfen , 1st edition, November 2019. P. 325 f.
26. ↑ Kevin Russell: [1]
27. ↑ Manuel Liebler: Kevin Russell live in Geiselwind. Comeback after the tragedy . In: Metal Hammer , May 2, 2013. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
28. ↑ Die Band ( Memento of the original from October 29, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . vm-sc.de. Retrieved September 8, 2013. 
29. ↑ Veritas Maximus in the German charts