The German musician Reinhard Friedrich Michael Mey was born in Berlin on December 21, 1942 and has been one of the most popular representatives of the German singer-songwriter scene since the late 1960s. He also performs under the pseudonyms Frédérik Mey (in France), Alfons Yondraschek and Rainer May. He learned to play the piano, guitar and trumpet as a child and also gained early experience on stage and in various bands. Reinhard Mey's first chanson, "Ich wollte wie Orpheus singen" (I wanted to sing like Orpheus), was released in 1964. In the following years, he toured Germany with Hannes Wader and performed German and French songs with him in clubs and on theater stages. Reinhard Mey achieved initial popularity through occasional radio and television contributions. His breakthrough in the German-speaking world came in 1971 with the double LP Reinhard Mey live and the song "Der Mörder ist immer der Gärtner". Between 1967 and 2020, Reinhard Mey released almost 40 studio albums. On his album Lieder von Freunden (2015), he released songs by well-known artists such as Rio Reiser, Klaus Hoffmann, Ludwig Hirsch and Boris Vian. Reinhard Mey also achieved great success in France and the Netherlands during his long career. A total of seven Frédérik Mey albums and two live LPs were released in both countries, also in French. Reinhard May celebrates his greatest success in 1974 with the title "Über den Wolken". He reached number 1 in the German album charts four times: Mein achtel Lorbeerblatt (1972), Bunter Hund (2007), Dann Mach's Gut (2013, also number 1 in Austria) and Nach Haus (2024). The singer-songwriter wins several gold records, his first being for Ich bin aus jenem Holze (1971). His 41st studio album, Nach Haus, is released in May 2024, reaching number 1 in Germany and number 3 in Switzerland.
