# Deutschland sucht den Superstar season 7

The seventh season of Deutschland sucht den Superstar was aired on German channel RTL from 6 January to 17 April 2010. The season marked a new national record with more than 35,000 participants. The season's winner was Mehrzad Marashi.

## Way to the Top 15
### Auditions

The seven Audition episodes were shown every Wednesday and Saturday from 6 January 2010 until 27 January 2010. Open auditions were held in the five cities Frankfurt, Munich, Cologne, Berlin and Hamburg, and in September and October 2009, an auditions truck visited the fifteen cities Freiburg, Mannheim, Stuttgart, Würzburg, Regensburg, Dortmund, Münster, Kassel, Erfurt, Dresden, Halle, Hanover, Bremen, Kiel and Rostock.

### "Recall"

The recall had 3 phases. The first phase was shot in a theater in Cologne. The 120 singers were split into 2 groups: Boys and Girls. Then every singer sang his favorite song. After that 55 singers were eliminated and the remaining singers sang in groups to get one of the 35 tickets for the next phase.
The second phase was shot in the Caribbean. The 35 singers sang three times: unaccompanied, in groups and in duos. The Top 25 came into the third phase.
The third and last phase was shot in the Schlosstheater Schwetzingen. The singers sang one song on their own. Then the jury decided which 15 singers came into the Top 15 live-show.
In this season, some of the contestants that had made it to the Top 15 had featured in previous seasons. Helmut Orosz made it to the Top 50 in season two but missing out on the Top 10 during the public vote. Menowin Fröhlich made it to the Top 20 shows in season 3 but was disqualified after being arrested and serving a two-year jail sentence. Kim Debkowski made it to the recall of the previous season but was eliminated after the group performance.

### Songs in "Recall 3" by the Top 10

* Mehrzad Marashi – "She's Like the Wind"
* Menowin Fröhlich – "I Just Called to Say I Love You"
* Manuel Hoffmann – "Get Here"
* Kim Debkowski – "If I Ain't Got You"
* Thomas Karaoglan – "Stand by Me"
* Helmut Orosz – "Back to You"
* Ines Redjeb – "Release Me"
* Nelson Sangare – "U Got It Bad"
* Marcel Pluschke – "Blowin' in the Wind"
* Steffi Landerer – "Because the Night"

## Finalists

(Ages stated at time of contest)
| Contestant | Age | Hometown | Voted off | Liveshow theme |
| Mehrzad Marashi | 29 | Hamburg | Winner | Grand Finale |
| Menowin Fröhlich | 22 | Darmstadt | 17 April 2010 | Grand Finale |
| Manuel Hoffmann | 19 | Braunfels | 20 March 2010 10 April 2010 | Hits in Germany and England Boy Bands, Music Heroes & No. 1 Hits |
| Kim Debkowski | 17 | Hamburg | 3 April 2010 | New Hits & Old Hits |
| Thomas Karaoglan | 16 | Duisburg | 27 March 2010 | Ballads & Ballermann |
| Helmut Orosz | 30 | Braunschweig | Disqualified | Disqualified |
| Ines Redjeb | 22 | Hamburg | 13 March 2010 | The 80s |
| Nelson Sangare | 24 | Aachen | 6 March 2010 | Happy Holiday Hits |
| Marcel Pluschke | 19 | Linnich | 27 February 2010 | All Time's Greatest Pop Hymns |
| Steffi Landerer | 19 | Fürstenwalde | 20 February 2010 | Today's Megahits |

## Live shows
### Top 15 – "Jetzt oder nie" (Now or Never)

    Original airdate: 13 February 2010
| Contestant | Song (Artist) | Percentage of calls |
| Menowin Fröhlich | I'll Be There (Jackson 5) | 22,8% (2/15) |
| Helmut Orosz | Summer of '69 (Bryan Adams) | 6,0% (5/15) |
| Mehrzad Marashi | Und wenn ein Lied (Söhne Mannheims) | 27,3% (1/15) |
| Nelson Sangare | Let Me Love You (Mario) | 7,5% (4/15) |
| Kevin Reichmann | Señorita (Justin Timberlake) | 1,7% (12/15) |
| Marcel Pluschke | Country Roads (Hermes House Band) | 2,6% (10/15) |
| Manuel Hoffmann | You Don't Know (Milow) | 5,8% (6/15) |
| Thomas Karaoglan | My Girl (The Temptations) | 9,3% (3/15) |
| Dirk Petry | Yesterday (The Beatles) | 1,6% (13/15) |
| Kim Debkowski | Can't Fight the Moonlight (LeAnn Rimes) | 4,2% (7/15) |
| Naomi Marte | Irgendwie, irgendwo, irgendwann (Nena) | 1,3% (14/15) |
| Ines Redjeb | Release Me (Agnes) | 3,6% (8/15) |
| Celine Denefleh | Symphonie (Silbermond) | 2,3% (11/15) |
| Steffi Landerer | I Love Rock 'n' Roll (Britney Spears) | 2,8% (9/15) |
| Maria Elena Valencia | Let's Get Loud (Jennifer Lopez) | 1,2% (15/15) |
Advancing to Top 10 (Public votes): Thomas, Nelson, Menowin, Kim, Mehrzad, Helmut, Manuel
Advancing to Top 10 (Jury selection): Marcel, Ines, Steffi
In this season the Top 10 was supposed to be formed by the Top 7 of the viewers vote plus 3 candidates picked by the jury (from the remaining 8 contestants). As a tribute to the viewers' support and the great success of the season the jury denied to choose advancing candidates. Instead they sent the 8th, 9th and 10th of the public vote. That also explains the gender ratio of the Top 10.

### Top 10 – "Die Megahits von heute" (Today's Megahits)

    Original airdate: 20 February 2010
| Contestant | Song (Artist) | Percentage of calls |
| Menowin Fröhlich | Change (Daniel Merriweather) | 37,4% (1/10) |
| Helmut Orosz | I'll Be Waiting (Lenny Kravitz) | 6,2% (6/10) |
| Mehrzad Marashi | Broken Strings (James Morrison) | 14,6% (2/10) |
| Nelson Sangare | Closer (Ne-Yo) | 6,3% (5/10) |
| Steffi Landerer | I Kissed a Girl (Katy Perry) | 3,2% (10/10) |
| Marcel Pluschke | Ein Kompliment (Sportfreunde Stiller) | 3,3% (9/10) |
| Manuel Hoffmann | Pflaster (Ich + Ich) | 4,0% (8/10) |
| Thomas Karaoglan | Monsta (Culcha Candela) | 12,7% (3/10) |
| Ines Redjeb | I Like (Keri Hilson) | 5,0% (7/10) |
| Kim Debkowski | Take a Bow (Rihanna) | 7,3% (4/10) |
* Jury Elimination Forecast: Steffi Landerer or Marcel Pluschke
* Bottom 4: Ines Redjeb, Steffi Landerer, Helmut Orosz and Nelson Sangare
* Eliminated: Steffi Landerer

### Top 9 – "Die größten Pop-Hymnen aller Zeiten" (All Time's Greatest Pop-Hymns)

    Original airdate: 27 February 2010
| Contestant | Song (Artist) | Percentage of calls |
| Nelson Sangare | What a Wonderful World (Louis Armstrong) | 10,9% (4/9) |
| Ines Redjeb | What a Feeling (Irene Cara) | 4,8% (7/9) |
| Menowin Fröhlich | We are the World (USA for Africa) | 36,2% (1/9) |
| Marcel Pluscke | Live is Life (Opus) | 3,6% (9/9) |
| Kim Debkowski | Fame (Irene Cara) | 7,4% (6/9) |
| Helmut Orosz | It's My Life (Bon Jovi) | 11,4% (3/9) |
| Mehrzad Marashi | One (U2) | 9,2% (5/9) |
| Thomas Karaoglan | Looking for Freedom (David Hasselhoff) | 12,4% (2/9) |
| Manuel Hoffmann | Wind of Change (The Scorpions) | 4,1% (8/9) |
* Jury Elimination Forecast: Marcel Pluschke or Ines Redjeb (Nina), Ines Redjeb (Volker), Ines Redjeb, Marcel Pluschke or Kim Debkowski (Dieter)
* Bottom 4: Kim Debkowski, Ines Redjeb, Marcel Pluschke and Nelson Sangare
* Eliminated: Marcel Pluschke

### Top 8 – "Happy Holiday Hits"

    Original airdate: 6 March 2010
| Contestant | Song (Artist) | Percentage of calls |
| Thomas Karaoglan | Mamacita (Mark Medlock) | 15,5% (3/8) |
| Helmut Orosz | "Summer in the City" (Joe Cocker) | 8,2% (5/8) |
| Menowin Fröhlich | Maria Maria (Santana) | 26,0% (1/8) |
| Ines Redjeb | When Love Takes Over (David Guetta & Kelly Rowland) | 7,9% (6/8) |
| Kim Debkowski | La Isla Bonita (Madonna) | 9,3% (4/8) |
| Manuel Hoffmann | Lady (Hear Me Tonight) (Modjo) | 7,6% (7/8) |
| Mehrzad Marashi | Fresh (Kool & The Gang) | 18,7% (2/8) |
| Nelson Sangare | Summer Jam (The Underdog Project) | 6,8% (8/8) |
* Jury Elimination Forecast: Manuel Hoffmann (Nina, Volker), Kim Debkowski or Manuel Hoffmann (Dieter)
* Bottom 4: Ines Redjeb, Nelson Sangare, Manuel Hoffmann and Kim Debkowski
* Eliminated: Nelson Sangare

### Top 7 – "80s"

    Original airdate: 13 March 2010
| Contestant | Song (Artist) | Percentage of calls |
| Mehrzad Marashi | Hello (Lionel Richie) | 14,0% (2/7) |
| Manuel Hoffmann | Ohne dich (Münchener Freiheit) | 8,2% (5/7) |
| Kim Debkowski | Eternal Flame (The Bangles) | 8,2% (6/7) |
| Thomas Karaoglan | YMCA (Village People) | 11,8% (3/7) |
| Helmut Orosz | Hungry Eyes (Eric Carmen) | 9,1% (4/7) |
| Menowin Fröhlich | Billie Jean (Michael Jackson) | 42,6% (1/7) |
| Ines Redjeb | Like a Prayer (Madonna) | 6,1% (7/7) |
* Jury Elimination Forecast: Manuel Hoffmann or Ines Redjeb
* Bottom 4: Helmut Orosz, Ines Redjeb, Manuel Hoffmann and Kim Debkowski
* Eliminated: Ines Redjeb

### Top 6 – "Deutsch vs. Englisch" (German vs. English)

    Original airdate: 20 March 2010
| Contestant | Song (Artist) | Percentage of calls |
| Helmut Orosz | (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction (The Rolling Stones) | 12,4% (4/6) |
| Helmut Orosz | 1000 und eine Nacht (Klaus Lage) | 12,4% (4/6) |
| Thomas Karaoglan | Relight My Fire (Take That & Lulu) | 11,4% (5/6) |
| Thomas Karaoglan | Hamma (Culcha Candela) | 11,4% (5/6) |
| Manuel Hoffmann | Life is a Rollercoaster (Ronan Keating) | 9,8% (6/6) |
| Manuel Hoffmann | Bilder von dir (Laith Al-Deen) | 9,8% (6/6) |
| Kim Debkowski | Can't Get You Out of My Head (Kylie Minogue) | 16,7% (3/6) |
| Kim Debkowski | Krieger des Lichts (Silbermond) | 16,7% (3/6) |
| Menowin Fröhlich | If You Don't Know Me by Now (Simply Red) | 27,8% (1/6) |
| Menowin Fröhlich | Über sieben Brücken musst du gehen (Peter Maffay) | 27,8% (1/6) |
| Mehrzad Marashi | Beggin' (Madcon) | 21,9% (2/6) |
| Mehrzad Marashi | Flugzeuge im Bauch (Herbert Grönemeyer) | 21,9% (2/6) |
* Jury Elimination Forecast: Helmut Orosz
* Bottom 3: Helmut Orosz, Manuel Hoffmann and Thomas Karaoglan
* Eliminated: Manuel Hoffmann
On the following day, Helmut Orosz was disqualified from the competition after admitting to taking drugs during the competition. Just as done in season 4, the person who was eliminated the past week would be brought back into the competition; in which Manuel Hoffmann advanced to the top 5.

### Top 5 – "Balladen & Ballermann" (Ballads & Ballermann)

    Original airdate: 27 March 2010
| Contestant | Song (Artist) | Percentage of calls |
| Menowin Fröhlich | What is Love (Haddaway) | 27,3% (1/5) |
| Menowin Fröhlich | How Deep Is Your Love (Bee Gees) | 27,3% (1/5) |
| Thomas Karaoglan | Das geht ab (Frauenarzt und Manny Marc) | 13,4% (5/5) |
| Thomas Karaoglan | Stand by Me (Ben E. King) | 13,4% (5/5) |
| Mehrzad Marashi | Mr. Boombastic (Shaggy) | 18,4% (3/5) |
| Mehrzad Marashi | Hard to Say I'm Sorry (Chicago) | 18,4% (3/5) |
| Kim Debkowski | Du hast mich tausendmal belogen (Andrea Berg) | 15,5% (4/5) |
| Kim Debkowski | Almost Lover (A Fine Frenzy) | 15,5% (4/5) |
| Manuel Hoffmann | Ein Stern (der deinen Namen trägt) (DJ Ötzi) | 25,4% (2/5) |
| Manuel Hoffmann | Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word (Elton John) | 25,4% (2/5) |
* Jury Elimination Forecast: Manuel Hoffmann, Kim Debkowski or Thomas Karaoglan
* Bottom 3: Manuel Hoffmann, Kim Debkowski and Thomas Karaoglan
* Eliminated: Thomas Karaoglan

### Top 4 – "Neue Hits & Alte Hits " (New Hits & Old Hits)

    Original airdate: 3 April 2010
| Contestant | Song (Artist) | Percentage of calls |
| Manuel Hoffmann | A Walk in the Park (Nick Straker) | 24,2% (3/4) |
| Manuel Hoffmann | Chasing Cars (Snow Patrol) | 24,2% (3/4) |
| Kim Debkowski | Yes Sir, I Can Boogie (Baccara) | 15,7% (4/4) |
| Kim Debkowski | Evacuate the Dancefloor (Cascada) | 15,7% (4/4) |
| Mehrzad Marashi | Unchained Melody (The Righteous Brothers) | 24,2% (2/4) |
| Mehrzad Marashi | Crazy (Gnarls Barkley) | 24,2% (2/4) |
| Menowin Fröhlich | Celebration (Kool & the Gang) | 35,9% (1/4) |
| Menowin Fröhlich | Ayo Technology (Milow) | 35,9% (1/4) |
* Jury Elimination Forecast: Menowin Fröhlich or Kim Debkowski (Nina & Volker), Kim Debkowski (Dieter)
* Bottom 2: Kim Debkowski and Manuel Hoffmann
* Eliminated: Kim Debkowski

### Top 3 – Semi Final (Boygroups, Music Hero & Number 1 Hits)

    Original airdate: 10 April 2010
| Contestant | Song (Artist) | Percentage of calls |
| Menowin Fröhlich | No Matter What (Boyzone) | 38,6% (1/3) |
| Menowin Fröhlich | You Are the Sunshine of My Life (Stevie Wonder) | 38,6% (1/3) |
| Menowin Fröhlich | I Swear (All-4-One) | 38,6% (1/3) |
| Manuel Hoffmann | Human (The Killers) | 23,7% (3/3) |
| Manuel Hoffmann | Englishman in New York (Sting) | 23,7% (3/3) |
| Manuel Hoffmann | Reality (Richard Sanderson) | 23,7% (3/3) |
| Mehrzad Marashi | End of the Road (Boyz II Men) | 37,7% (2/3) |
| Mehrzad Marashi | Runaway (Del Shannon) | 37,7% (2/3) |
| Mehrzad Marashi | Ich kenne Nichts (Xavier Naidoo) feat (RZA) | 37,7% (2/3) |
* Live-Act: "Real Love" by Mark Medlock
* Jury Elimination Forecast: Manuel Hoffmann (Nina), No Forecast (Dieter & Volker)
* Bottom 2: Manuel Hoffmann and Mehrzad Marashi
* Eliminated: Manuel Hoffmann

### Top 2 – Final (Contestant's Choice, Highlight Song & Winner's Single)

    Original airdate: 17 April 2010
| Contestant | Song (Artist) | Percentage of calls |
| Menowin Fröhlich | That's What Friends Are For (Dionne Warwick) | 43,6% (2/2) |
| Menowin Fröhlich | Billie Jean (Michael Jackson) | 43,6% (2/2) |
| Menowin Fröhlich | Don't Believe (Winner's Single (Dieter Bohlen)) | 43,6% (2/2) |
| Mehrzad Marashi | Endless Love (Lionel Richie) | 56,4% (1/2) |
| Mehrzad Marashi | Fresh (Kool & The Gang) | 56,4% (1/2) |
| Mehrzad Marashi | Don't Believe (Winner's Single (Dieter Bohlen)) | 56,4% (1/2) |
Judges' forecasts of who would win: Menowin Fröhlich
Winner: Mehrzad Marashi
Runner-up: Menowin Fröhlich

## Group song

* Top 10: "I Gotta Feeling" by The Black Eyed Peas
* Top 9: "The Final Countdown" by Europe
* Top 8: "Ritmo de la noche" by Chocolate
* Top 7: "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" by Wham!
* Top 6: "Let Me Entertain You" by Robbie Williams
* Top 5: "Hey! Baby" by DJ Ötzi
* Top 4: "Crying at the Discoteque" by Alcazar
* Top 3: "Love Is Gone" by David Guetta
* Top 2: "I Gotta Feeling" by The Black Eyed Peas – performed by all Top 10 contestants (with the exception of Helmut Orosz) and "I Came for You" (performed by the two finalists) by The Disco Boys

## Elimination chart

| Safe | Safe First | Safe Last | Eliminated |
| Stage: | Stage: | Top 15 | Finals | Finals | Finals | Finals | Finals | Finals | Finals | Finals | Finals |
| Week: | Week: | 2/13 | 2/20 | 2/27 | 3/6 | 3/13 | 3/20 | 3/27 | 4/3 | 4/10 | 4/17 |
| Place | Contestant | Result | Result | Result | Result | Result | Result | Result | Result | Result | Result |
| 1 | Mehrzad Marashi | Viewers | | | | | | Btm 3 | | Btm 2 | Winner |
| 2 | Menowin Fröhlich | Viewers | | | | | | | | | Runner-Up |
| 3 | Manuel Hoffmann | Viewers | Btm 3 | Btm 2 | Btm 2 | Btm 3 | Elim | | Btm 2 | Elim | |
| 4 | Kim Debkowski | Viewers | | | | Btm 2 | | Btm 2 | Elim | | |
| 5 | Thomas Karaoglan | Viewers | | | | | Btm 2 | Elim | | | |
| 6 | Helmut Orosz | Viewers | | | | | DQ | | | | |
| 7 | Ines Redjeb | Viewers | | Btm 3 | Btm 3 | Elim | | | | | |
| 8 | Nelson Sangare | Viewers | | | Elim | | | | | | |
| 9 | Marcel Pluschke | Viewers | Btm 2 | Elim | | | | | | | |
| 10 | Steffi Landerer | Viewers | Elim | | | | | | | | |
| 11-15 | Celine Denefleh | Elim | | | | | | | | | |
| 11-15 | Kevin Reichmann | Elim | | | | | | | | | |
| 11-15 | Dirk Petry | Elim | | | | | | | | | |
| 11-15 | Naomi Marte | Elim | | | | | | | | | |
| 11-15 | Maria Elena Valenica | Elim | | | | | | | | | |
* On 13 February, it was supposed that the viewers would choose seven finalists and the judges three. The judges, or better said Dieter Bohlen, however chose to not decide and therefore the next three highest vote getters made it through to the finals automatically. They were Ines Redjeb, Marcel Pluschke and Steffi Landerer.
* Helmut Orosz was expelled from the competition due to his drug abuse shown in a video. Therefore, Manuel Hoffmann, who was voted off the last in the competition, was brought back as the replacement.