Emo groups
Big hair comb and rich make-up on the singer, dreadlocks on the guitarist: twin brothers Bill and Tom Kaulitz made Tokio Hotel famous in 2007, also thanks to a very daring image. The German quartet rode the wave of “emo” pop music and became a favorite among young girls thanks to the hit “Monsoon”. The members then appeared to be little more than children, with the Kaulitz twins barely reaching adulthood. Let’s take a look at how the birthday party for the twins, who turn 34 today, September 1st, has evolved.
Bill Kaulitz
With piercings, makeup and black nail polish, flashy clothes and an androgynous look, singer Bill Kaulitz, with his mohawk, is somewhat emblematic of the “first” Tokio Hotel. Growing up in a small German village, he was bullied as a child due to his flamboyant appearance. Bill, born 10 minutes after his twin brother Tom, in 2008, at the height of the band’s success, underwent vocal cord surgery, fortunately without sequelae.
Metamorphosis
Today, at 34, the Tokio Hotel singer has undergone a metamorphosis: no mohawk, short blond hair, Bill Kaulitz now lives in Los Angeles (like his brother). Over the years, in addition to his musical career, he has walked the runway for fashion brands, appeared on television as a member of the jury of the German talent show, and also filmed television commercials with Alice Cooper.
Tom Kaulitz
Tom Kaulitz has made headlines in recent years. The guitarist of Tokio Hotel has actually been married to top model Heidi Klum since February 2019, and then they resumed their wedding this summer in Italy, Capri, a place that was already the couple’s vacation spot. Kaulitz is 16 years younger than the model, she is in her third marriage and has four children.
Stalkers
After the extraordinary success of “Monsoon” and their first album in English “Scream” in 2007, Tokio Hotel gained international exposure, followed by the album “Humanoid” in 2009. In the same year, the group was involved in a scandalous story. The story involves four stalkers who followed them obsessively for six months: four French women, calling themselves Les Afghanes on Tour, hid under their houses and threatened them until an angry Tom Kaulitz hit one of them. The guitarist was forced to pay a fine and the girl received a restraining order.
Videos scandal
In 2014, after several years of silence, Tokio Hotel returned with a new album “Kings of Suburbia”, which definitely distanced them from the “teenage” image of the early days. First of all, the transgressive music video for the single “Love who loves you Back”, which depicts the band in a club involved in some kind of promiscuous orgy, caused a stir.
Today
With over 10 million records sold worldwide, platinum records in 68 countries and over 110 national and international awards: from the top of these numbers, Tokio Hotel continues its musical journey. In 2017, the album “Dream Machine” was released, and in 2022, the seventh album “2001” was released, a reference to the year the group was born. The latest work also contains a new version of their famous “Durch den Monsun”.