Fendrich on his 70th birthday:

Fendrich: “I am not afraid of death”

Austropop legend Rainhard Fendrich celebrates his 70th birthday on February 27.

(Bild: Andreas Tischler)

On February 27, Austropop legend Rainhard Fendrich celebrates his 70th birthday. In addition to the number one album "Wimpernschlag", he will be touring the country throughout the year. With the "Krone", he looks back on his unique career and reflects on his colorful life.

And it happened again. Of course, Rainhard Fendrich's new studio album "Wimpernschlag" landed at number one in the Austrian charts. This is not a new feeling for the Viennese bard. Since 1991, all of the artist's albums have landed on the throne, and Fendrich's popularity remains unbroken despite his increasing politicization in song lyrics and interviews. On February 27, the "Sonnyboy" of Austropop celebrates his 70th birthday. He is celebrating 2025 in style. In addition to the new successful album, there will also be an extensive tour to mark his 45th stage anniversary, which will take him across Austria and twice to the Wiener Stadthalle, among other venues. "It's a bit like doing schoolwork because the expectations are so high," he tells the Krone in an interview, "but I'm doing my best to live up to them."

Constant cross-connection
As the son of a Sudeten German mother, Fendrich had an ambivalent upbringing in Vienna. Cared for by his mother's love, but also driven by his father's relentless strictness. He attended a Catholic boarding school for seven years, which repeatedly changed and recalibrated his approach to faith and religion. At 15, Fendrich got his first guitar and finally found his way into the world of culture - but first on the theater stage. In the early 1980s, he played Judas in the musical "Jesus Christ Superstar" at the Theater an der Wien and was hired by theater director Hans Gratzer for "Hamlet" at the Schauspielhaus. At the same time, he got his first recording contract and became a successful musician. The cross-connection remains with him to this day. "When I go to the theater, I want it to have a lasting effect. That's what I want when the audience hears my songs."

In the heyday of Austropop, Fendrich celebrated groundbreaking success in the 1980s. Songs such as "Strada Del Sole", "Schickeria", "Macho, Macho" or "Weus'd a Herz hast wia a Bergwerk" rotated on the radios and conquered the charts, but in contrast to colleagues such as Wolfgang Ambros, Georg Danzer or Ludwig Hirsch, Fendrich was often denied seriousness and lyrical depth by the media. "When I started out, it was the heyday of the singer-songwriter - that's where I wanted to be. But I also have to defend myself and say that every supposedly light song has a deeper background. 'Macho, Macho' takes aim at exaggerated masculinity, 'Blond' is about men who are so stupid and only care about appearances and 'Schickeria' refers to the envious society." However, Fendrich can no longer relate to "Oben ohne", one of his earliest hits. "Back then, it was an issue because it was allowed. Looking back, of course, it's not important at all."

Triumphs and tragedies
He finished the 80s brilliantly - unnoticed at first. In 1989, the song "I Am From Austria" was released, which was not a hit at first, but over the years became Austria's secret national anthem and most recently inspired the national soccer team to top performances at the European Championships in Germany. Similar to Bruce Springsteen with his "Born In The USA", Fendrich sometimes felt his song was misinterpreted. In 1993, Fendrich moved into television for the first time. He took over from audience favorite Rudi Carrell as presenter of "Herzblatt" and delighted fans until 1997. In 2000, he was the first presenter of "Alles ist möglich", the show that would later become the ORF product "Millionenshow", which is still successful today. In 1997, an initially one-off charity performance with Ambros and Danzer gave rise to the all-star project Austria 3, with which the three friends celebrated great success until they split up in 2006. But alongside all the triumphs, Fendrich also had to overcome many tragedies.

His daughter Theresa died of a viral disease in 1989 at the age of just 17 months, which according to Fendrich was the beginning of his drug addiction that was later exploited by the media. In 2006, he confessed to using cocaine and was publicly pilloried, but has since been considered clean. With Danzer's death from lung cancer in 2007, the Austria 3 project finally died. Fendrich's suggestion to integrate EAV frontman Klaus Eberhartinger degenerated into a long argument with Ambros. "I used to be very cheeky and have become a bit more cautious today," Fendrich admits to the "Krone" today, "my favorite book is 'Mit der Reife wird man jünger' by Hermann Hesse. That's true, because at least you become more level-headed and have a different perspective on things. Some people become stagnant with age, others try to open their horizons further. I try to belong to the second group."

Time for reflection
Fendrich has remained loyal to theater, acting and, above all, music over the years. Artistically, he became more and more political as he got older - this change of direction also plays an important role in his new work "Wimpernschlag". Shortly before turning 70, there is also time for reflection. "When I look back today, I often think to myself that I was just putting off the years. At 30, 40 and 50, there was a mid-life crisis or some other huge drama - that stays with you. I already knew that I would turn 70 at some point. But now that the milestone birthday is just around the corner, it's already a big deal." On the artwork for his new album, Fendrich is depicted both now and in his younger years. "I'm standing by my age and my experience. I am the way I am and will certainly never have a facelift."

At 70, Fendrich is in good shape both physically and mentally and has big plans for the extensive tour. "A friend told me that at 70 I was already in the post-game period of life, so at some point you can't lie to yourself anymore. Time has become more precious, which is why I became an early riser. The two or three hours that I'm awake before everyone else is my 'me time'." When you talk about the aftermath of life - do fears and worries also interfere with everyday life? "Of course, thoughts about transience come up, but fortunately I'm in better shape than I ever imagined I would be at 70 - others are nowhere near as well off. I'm not afraid of death, but I am afraid of dying. After all, you never know how it will happen and you can never get that out of your mind completely."

Tour through Austria
In 2025, Rainhard Fendrich is going on a big "45 years live" tour - you sometimes have to be quick with tickets(www.oeticket.com) if you want to be at the concerts. Among others, he will be playing on April 25 and May 16 in the Wiener Stadthalle, on April 27 and May 17 in the Salzburgarena, on May 1 in the Dornbirn Halle 11, on May 5 in the Linzer Arena, on July 6 in the Klagenfurter Ostbucht, on October 28 in the Grazer Stadthalle and on October 31 in the Innsbrucker Olympiahalle. You can find all concert dates and ticket information at www.fendrich.at.