Lena Karuschmann

**Magdalena Vanesa Karuschmann-Gribau** (née **Karuschmann**; born 7 May 1986), known professionally as **Lena Karuschmann**, is a Lungarian singer, songwriter, and model. Born and raised in Southeast Veckerland, Karuschmann attended Kaun Gymnasium, before graduating in 2005 and moved to Munbach to pursue a career in music.

In 2007, Karuschmann was cast as one of the founding members of the Lungarian girl group VENOM. With VENOM, she went on to achieve widespread mainstream popularity in Lungary, and achieved international recognition after winning the World Song Contest 2009. Rumors of Karuschmann's supposed ousting from the group began arising in 2012, and in October 2012 she revealed that she'd be leaving VENOM due to her pregnancy. After a hiatus from music, she returned to the industry in 2014 with the release of her debut solo single "Stuck", which became the best-selling single of 2014 in Lungary. Her debut solo album *Karuschmann* was released later that year, and was certified diamond. Karuschmann has went on to release follow-up albums in 2016 and 2017, both of which have gone on to top the charts internationally.

Arguably the leading contemporary Lungarian pop singer, Karuschmann has sold over 8 million albums and 35 million singles worldwide. She is often credited with creating a new leading music genre in Lungary – self-described as "aesthetic pop", which incorporates elements of synth-pop, alternative R&B, and 90s music, in addition to the non-musical influences of neon imagery, pop art, and fashion trends from the 80s and 90s. In 2017, Karuschmann was named "the most important female in Lungarian music of the past 50 years" by *Ella Magazine*.

## Early life and education

Karuschmann was born on 7 May 1986 in Kaun, Southeast Veckerland to parents Henrik and Margareta Karuschmann (née *Hänscher*). Henrik is a biology lecturer at a *gymnasiüm*, while Margareta works as a saleswoman for a paper company. Karuschmann was raised in what she refers to as a "normal, middle-class household". She has two older brothers, Daniel and Gregor, born in 1980 and 1983, respectively, both of whom work in business. Regarding her family, Karuschmann has stated, "My family is very straight-laced. They all have normal, professional careers, while I was always the creative one".

Karuschmann began primary school in 1992, where she often struggled due to her overactive imagination. Despite struggling in academic classes, Karuschmann thrived in creative classes, and developed a love for music and performing through her primary school music teacher. She began taking dance classes at age six, and at age nine, she began receiving private singing lessons. Karuschmann graduated from primary school in 1998. During secondary school, Karuschmann began writing poetry, which later transitioned into songwriting. She has stated that she struggled with depression throughout secondary school, and that many of the songs she wrote during this period reflected that. Karuschmann graduated from secondary school in 2002.

After her graduation, she wished to move to Munbach to pursue a career in music, but was forced by her parents to attend tertiary education. Ultimately, she attended Kaun Gymnasium, and studied philosophy in her final year. Karuschmann has stated that she hated high school, and that she was an "outsider" throughout all three years. After her graduation in 2005, her parents tried to persuade her to study at the University of Veckerland, but she ultimately decided to move to Munbach to pursue her dreams of becoming a musician.

## Career

### 2005–2012: Early career and work with VENOM

After settling in Munbach in 2005, Karuschmann began performing in nightclubs, while waitressing during the day to support herself. She frequently created demo tapes to send to record labels, but very rarely received calls back. Several months after moving to Munbach, Karuschmann was approached to begin modeling, which soon became her primary source of income. Karuschmann has spoken about how she felt her success in the modeling industry was odd, stating, "I was never popular in high school, and I had never had a boyfriend either. It was crazy that people liked how I look, especially because no one ever saw me as pretty when I was a teenager".

In 2006, Karuschmann received an audition at Intercontinental Music Lungary for an upcoming girl group through her modeling connections. She continued to pass through the rounds of auditions, and ultimately was announced as one of the three members of the group, now called VENOM, along with Anastazia Kortscheck and Ella Mann. The trio released their debut single "Mamma" the following year. "Mamma" went on to become a widely successful single throughout Lungary, and became well-known for its provocative music video. Following the success of the single and music video, the group began adopting a highly sexual image, and started to cause minor controversies for their red carpet outfits and antics. Their debut self-titled studio album was released in November 2007, and reached the peak position on the Lungarian albums chart.

In 2008, VENOM was announced as one of the twelve competitors in *Lüngarderisch Song 2009*, the Lungarian national selection for the World Song Contest. Their entry for the competition, "Soldiers", was later unveiled to the public in January 2009, and debuted atop the Lungarian singles chart. They went on to win the competition, earning the right to represent Lungary in the World Song Contest 2009. At the contest, they went on to win, becoming the first girl group to ever win and the sixth entrant from Lungary to win. Following their win, their second studio album *Soldiers of Hate* was released in July 2009. They went on to release one other album with Karuschmann, *Poison Kiss*, in 2011.

In summer 2012, rumors began to arise of Karuschmann's supposed ousting from the group at the hands of their record label. While Karuschmann denied that she was being fired, she refused to comment on whether she was remaining in the group. In October 2012, it was announced that she was voluntarily leaving VENOM in order to pursue a solo career. However, it was later leaked by the press a month later that she was pregnant, and was dismissed from the group because she chose to continue with her pregnancy. Shortly after the story broke, Karuschmann confirmed her pregnancy and announced that she planned to take a hiatus from music in order to prioritize her family life.

### 2014–2015: Solo breakthrough and *Karuschmann*

Rumors regarding Karuschmann's return to music began circulating in early-2014, when it was announced that she had signed solo recording contracts with Gregor Music Lungary and Starlite Music. However, following the announcement she continued to remain silent regarding her possible solo career. In summer 2014, she surprise released her debut single "Stuck". The song was a departure from the dance-pop music that VEMON released, and instead incorporating electropop and alternative R&B. The music video was also frequently circulated, with critics describing it as "art house cinema" and "futuristic soft core porn".

Following its release, "Stuck" debuted at number-one in Lungary, and also went on to achieve widespread success in a number of other countries. It went on to become certified diamond in Lungary, and was declared the best-selling single of 2014 in the country. Karuschmann's debut solo studio album *Karuschmann* went on to be released in November 2014. Like its lead single, the album became a chart-topping success in multiple countries, and received a diamond certification in Karuschmann's home country. To support the album, she embarked on the *Brand New Me World Tour*, which ran from November 2014 through June 2015.

### 2016–present: *Blue Angel*, *XyX*, and widespread success

Following the completion of the *Brand New Me World Tour*, Karuschmann revealed that she'd be taking time off from the public eye to prioritize her family, but that she'd continue writing new music for her sophomore release. By October 2015, Karuschmann revealed that she had written "well over" 300 songs, and that those that do not make her new album will be considered for her third album. She later confirmed that recording for her second studio album had begun in January 2016.

In April 2016, Karuschmann released the single "You Weren't Mine". The song saw a heavier influence from alternative R&B, and also saw prominent hip hop influences as well, a genre that she had rarely experimented with previously. The song was largely successfully, peaking in the top ten within twenty-four countries, and being certified multi-platinum internationally. The single was followed by Karuschmann's second studio album, *Blue Angel*, which was released in July 2016. Like its predecessor, the album peaked at number-one in a number of countries, and was certified platinum in Lungary. She promoted the album with the *Dawn of the Blue Angel World Tour*, which ran from July 2016 to December 2016.

Following the completion of the *Dawn of the Blue Angel World Tour* in December 2016, Karuschmann revealed that she had immediately began work on her third studio album using songs that did not make it on *Blue Angel*, and some that she wrote while touring. She began recording the album in February 2017.

Karuschmann released the lead single to her third studio album, "Rip It Off", in June 2017. The song became well-known for its provocative lyrics, and extremely sexual music video, which was banned in two countries. Despite the controversy, the song still performed very well commercially, becoming Karuschmann's fifth number-one single in Lungary, in addition to charting within the top ten of several countries' singles charts. Her third studio album *XyX* (pronounced "zecks"), was later released in November 2017. The album was certified platinum in Lungary, and became the best-selling album of 2017 in the country. She is supporting the album with the *XyX Wechallian Tour*, which will run from December 2017 to February 2018.

## Personal life

Karuschmann began a relationship with music producer Anders Gribau in January 2011, after he produced several songs from VENOM's album *Poison Kiss*. She gave birth to her and Gribau's daughter, Morgana Alexandra Karuschmann-Gribau on 27 April 2013. Karuschmann and Gribau later married in August 2013, in a private ceremony in Vecker. The family resides in the Dacht neighborhood of Munbach.

## Discography

*Main article: Lena Karuschmann discography.*

* *Karuschmann* (2014)
* *Blue Angel* (2016)
* *XyX* (2017)

## Awards and nominations

*Main article: Awards and nominations received by Lena Karuschmann.*