Source: David Hasselhoff – Looking For Freedom (Live in Berlin)
Today’s Ohrwurm is David Hasselhoff – Looking For Freedom, which seems appropriate on a day when the people of Berlin are again protesting at the wall.
David Hasselhoff singing on top of the Berlin Wall, with the Brandenburg Gate as a backdrop, on New Year’s Eve 1989 came at a time when people were celebrating the fall of the wall.
In fact, according to this BBC article, the Hoff is disappointed that his role in uniting the people of East and West Germany is not more widely acknowledged.
My friend Gilly and I recently discussed the Hoff’s contribution to Berlin and the possibility of a street being named after him. Hasselhoffstrasse anyone? Or maybe the Hackesche Höfe could become the Hassel Höfe?
Today, Berliners will gather at the East Side Gallery to protest against the removal of a section of the wall to build a block of luxury flats. The East Side Gallery is a 1.3km stretch of the wall on Mühlerstrasse near the Spree covered in murals by international artists, as an “international memorial for freedom”.
It seems perverse that such a symbol could be torn down, especially in a city that has so many empty and abandoned buildings.
To paraphrase Ronald Reagan’s famous speech in Berlin on 12 June 1987, the message to Berlin’s mayor Klaus Wowereit is:
Mr Wowereit, DON’T tear down this wall!
A petition has been started to halt the destruction of the wall and currently has over 53,000 signatures. If you’d like the East Side Gallery to remain unchanged you can sign here.
David Hasselhoff – Looking For Freedom (Live in Berlin)
The song starts at 0:55 if you want to skip the introduction from the Hoff.
Wow, interesting. I suppose that they want it there because of the view, but yes, it’s ridiculous to tear something so historical down…and it’s not the same if they’re going to move it elsewhere…having it in it’s original context is so much better. And, like you say, if there are empty buildings all over the place…good grief! I hope it all works out – you’ll have to keep us informed! I’m hoping to get back to Berlin next year or the year after – my husband goes every year for work and I went with him two year ago and I can’t wait to return! (I lived there in high school, 25 years ago!)