Falco

About Falco

Falco, born Johann Hölzel, was an Austrian musician known for pioneering the Neue Deutsche Welle genre, blending new wave, rock, pop, and hip-hop with his distinctive rap-like vocals and often witty German lyrics. He achieved international stardom with hits such as "Der Kommissar" and "Rock Me Amadeus," the latter making him the only artist in history to score a number-one hit with a German-language song in the United States. Falco's career was marked by his ambitious and eccentric persona, establishing him as the best-selling Austrian singer of all time with 20 million albums and 40 million singles sold. Despite his death in a traffic collision in 1998 at the age of 40, Falco's legacy continues to thrive. Posthumous endeavors include the album "Out of the Dark (Into the Light)" and the 2008 film "Falco: Damn It, We're Still Alive!". More recently, "Rock Me Amadeus - Das Falco Musical" was performed in 2023, showcasing his enduring cultural impact. His music is still sampled by other artists, and he is honored in his hometown of Vienna with a staircase named after him and his portrait displayed in a club.