Mr. President (band)

Mr. President
The final lineup of Mr. President, featuring (from left to right) Franzi, Lazy Dee, and Lady Danii, perform Coco Jamboo at Hit Giganten, 2004.
Background information
Also known as	Satellite One
Origin	Bremen, Germany
Genres	Eurodance, pop, reggae
Years active	1991–2008
Labels	Warner Bros. Records (1994 - 2003)
Website	mr-president.de
Past members
Lady Danii T-Seven Sir Prophet Lazy Dee Nadia Ayche Myra Franzi

Mr. President was a German euro-dance group from Bremen, best known for their hit "Coco Jamboo" released in 1996. It gave them their only U.S. chart single, peaking at No. 21 on the Billboard Hot 100. Until 1993, the band was known as Satellite One.

History

Formation of band and early success

The band was originally formed in Bremen by DJs Jens Neumann and Kai Matthiesen in 1991 under the title Satellite One. Although the band initially performed at clubs without vocalists, the duo soon realized that they would need singers in order to find success on mainstream music charts. 18 year old Bremen native Daniela Haak and American rapper George Jones were hired to front the band as a duo, but became a trio after 15 year old Judith "T-Seven" Hildebrandt was hired a few weeks later. Following Hildebrandt's insistence to be known as T-Seven on stage, Haak and Jones were convinced to create stage names for themselves, and they did, becoming "Lady Danii" and "Sir Prophet", respectively.

After a few years of performing in clubs without any mainstream success, Neumann and Matthiesen, now managers as well as producers, decided to change the name of the band to Mr. President, the 'Mr' standing for Music and Rhythm. Under the new band name, the group created an underground dance club hit with the song "MM" (Marilyn Monroe) in 1993. Although it failed to chart, "MM"'s popularity was a sign of things to come for the band.

Up N' Away, lineup change and success in 1995

Following the success of their earlier single, Mr. President broke onto the charts with the song Up N' Away. Just as the song became a success in early 1994, George Jones left the band over several internal disagreements within the band. Although the project was briefly abandoned, Neumann hired Delroy "Lazy Dee" Rennalls in mid-1994 to replace Jones. After several long months in the studio, Mr. President's first full-length album, Up N' Away - The Album was released featuring a new version of Up N' Away with Lazy's voice instead of Jones'. Three additional songs on the album were selected as singles (I Follow the Sun, 4 On the Floor and Gonna Get Along), and each one of them successfully broke European charts.

Coco Jamboo

1996 saw Mr. President ease away from its dance roots in favour of a lighter, more exotic sound. The new sound was first featured on the reggae-inspired 1996 hit Coco Jamboo. Not only did the song become the band's highest hit to date in Germany, Australia and Switzerland (where their previous singles charted highest), Coco Jamboo became the first Mr. President single to chart in the UK peaking at #8 (but only 2 small hits following) and in the United States, peaking at #21 on the Billboard Hot 100. The full-length album on which Coco Jamboo was released, We See The Same Sun, boasted two more additional singles which were largely successful in Europe.

Nightclub and Space Gate

Mr. President performing Take Me to the Limit at Die Nacht, 1997.

Hoping to capitalize on the success of We See The Same Sun, Mr. President again employed their lighter sound on the 1997 CD Nightclub. JoJo Action, the first single released from Nightclub added to the band's continued success in Europe, peaking as high as #3 in Australia. Although the next three hits from the CD charted impressively in Europe, none of the singles were able to chart in the United States. During the promotional campaign for Nightclub in 1997, Lady Danii took a brief leave from the group to pursue a solo career with the band Reset, but returned a few months later.

In the midst of promotion, Haak and Hildebrandt were accused of not using their own voices in any of Mr. President's songs. To avoid controversy, Matthiesen and Neumann appeared in a televised interview on German channel VIVA and explained that the voices were indeed Daniela and Judith's, but that their pitches were technically edited during recording.

A year later, Mr. President released Space Gate, which marked a return to their earlier sound. Give a Little Love and Simbaleo proved to be moderate successes, but the band was again unable to return to the heights of 1996.

A Kind of... Best! and hiatus

After half a year away from the studio in 1999, Mr. President returned in the new millennium with A Kind of... Best!, their first singles compilation CD. Accompanying the CD was Up N' Away 2k, the band's new single, which failed to chart even in Germany. Following the failure of their latest single and their fading public image, Judith Hildebrandt left the group in February 2000 to begin her solo career. Following the departure of Hildebrandt, the band decided to focus efforts on releasing another compilation album, and they did, with Golden Super Hits hitting shelves near the end of 2000.

Lineup changes and Forever & One Day

Mr. President performs Forever & One Day in 2003. Myra (left) joined in 2002.

Mr. President reemerged in early 2001 after hiring classical singer Nadia Ayche. Although the band performed live with Ayche, and even began recording new songs with her, she was dismissed in 2002 after directional disagreements with the band. Ayche's replacement, Myra Beckmann, was hired soon after, and the new lineup began immediately recording songs for their next CD.

After almost a year in the studio, Forever & One Day was released in the summer of 2003 with Love, Sex and Sunshine as the lead single. After almost four years away from the European music scene, the band's latest single managed to chart impressively well, peaking at #23 in Germany. The following single, Forever & One Day, was released a few weeks later and did similarly well, peaking at #51 in their homeland. Just a few months after touring had begun, however, Beckmann was forced to leave the band due to undisclosed health issues, leaving Haak and Rennalls to perform as a duo for the remainder of the tour. Once again, the band was forced to find someone to fill the vacated lead vocalist position, and a few weeks later, they did, hiring established pop singer Franziska "Franzi" Frank.

Later work and separation

Immediately following the Forever & One Day tour, the band announced its intentions to create a new CD. Despite the announcement, nothing ever materialized. The band would go on performing at special events (most notably at Hit Giganten in 2004) until 2006. In 2005, the first (and only) single featuring Frank's vocals, Sweat (A La La La La Long), a cover of the Inner Circle hit, was released as an iTunes-only single. Another iTunes-only single was released by the band in 2006. This single, titled Megamix 2006, blended each of the band's greatest hits into a single track. Following the release of Megamix 2006, the band quietly went into hiatus (although they performed a handful of times in 2007 and 2008), with word of official separation coming in 2008, when Lazy, Frank and Haak announced that they would be parting ways.

Discography

Mr. President discography

Releases
↙Studio albums	7
↙Compilation albums	4
↙Singles	19
↙Music videos	15

Studio albums

Title	Album details	Peak chart positions						Certifications
		GER [1]	AUT [2]	FIN [3]	NDL [4]	SWE [5]	SWI [6]
Up'n Away - The Album	Released: March 23, 1995 Label: Warner (Germany) Formats: CD, Cassette, Vinyl	37	—	4	—	—	38	FIN: Platinum[7]
We See the Same Sun	Released: May 17, 1996 Label: Warner International Formats: CD, Cassette, Vinyl	16	15	1	80	56	9	FIN: Platinum[7] SWI: Gold [8]
Nightclub	Released: August 27, 1997 Label: Warner International Formats: CD, Cassette, Vinyl	10	15	10	—	—	11
Space Gate	Released: May 25, 1999 Label: Warner (Germany) Formats: CD, Cassette, Vinyl	5	22	32	—	—	11
"—" denotes items that did not chart or were not released.

Compilation albums

Title	Album details	Peak chart positions
		GER [1]	AUT [2]	FIN [3]	NDL [4]	SWE [5]	SWI [6]	US
Mr. President (U.S. release only)	Released: July 15, 1997 Label: Warner Brothers Formats: CD,Cassette, Vinyl	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
A Kind of...Best!	Released: November 20, 2000 Label: Warner International Formats: CD, Cassette	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Forever & One Day (Japan release only)	Released: June 12, 2003 Formats: CD, Cassette	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"—" denotes items that did not chart or were not released.

Singles

Title	Year	Peak chart positions										Certifications	Album
		GER [9]	AUS [10]	AUT [2]	FIN [3]	FRA [11]	NDL [12]	SWE [5]	SWI [13]	UK [14]	US [15]
"MM"	1993	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—		Non-album single
"Up'n Away"	1994	12	—	6	—	—	—	24	17	—	—	GER: Gold [16]	Up'n Away - The Album
"I'll Follow the Sun"	1995	23	—	18	—	—	—	—	16	—	—
"4 On the Floor"		38	—	—	—	—	—	36	—	—	—
"Gonna Get Along (Without Ya Now)"		31	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Coco Jamboo"	1996	2	7	1	3	28	2	1	1	8	21	GER: Platinum [16] AUS: Platinum [17] AUT: Gold [18] SWE: Gold [19] SWI: Gold [8] UK: Silver[20]	We See the Same Sun
"I Give You My Heart"		7	—	12	9	—	—	47	6	52	—	GER: Gold[16]
"Show Me the Way"		28	—	18	19	—	—	59	21	—	—
"Gonna Get Up"		—	—	—	13	—	—	—	—	—	—		Nightclub
"JoJo Action"	1997	4	—	3	8	—	—	—	5	73	—	GER: Gold[16]
"Take Me to the Limit"		11	—	16	18	—	—	—	21	—	—
"Where Do I Belong" (featuring Münchener Freiheit)		49	—	25	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Happy People"	1998	15	—	16	—	—	—	—	17	—	—
"Give a Little Love"	1999	13	—	8	—	—	—	—	18	—	—		Space Gate
"Simbaleo"		30	—	40	—	—	—	—	24	—	—
"Up'n Away 2K"	2000	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—		A Kind of... Best
"Love, Sex & Sunshine"	2003	23	—	35	—	—	—	—	—	—	—		Forever & One Day
"Forever & One Day"		51	—	48	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Sweat (A La La La La Long)"	2005	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—		Non-album single
"Megamix 2006"	2006	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"—" denotes items that did not chart or were not released.

Band line-up

• Lady Danii (Daniela Haak; 1991–2008)
• T-Seven (Judith Hildebrandt; 1991–2000)
• Sir Prophet (George Jones; 1993–1994)
• Lazy Dee (Delroy Rennalls; 1994–2008)
• Nadia Ayche (2001–2002)
• Myra (Myriam Beckmann; 2002–2003)
• Franzi (Franziska Frank; 2003–2008)

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Charts.de: Mr. President (Albums)" (in German). Charts.de. Media Control. http://www.charts.de/search.asp?search=Mr.+President&x=11&y=10&cat=a&country=de. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} "Mr. President in der Österreichischen Hitparade" (in German). austriancharts.at. Hung Medien. http://austriancharts.at/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Mr%2E+President. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
3. ^ ^{a b c} "Mr. President in Finnish charts". finnishcharts.com. Hung Medien. http://finnishcharts.com/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Mr%2E+President. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
4. ^ ^{a b} "GFK Dutch Charts: Mr. President (albums)". dutchcharts.nl. Hung Medien. http://dutchcharts.nl//search.asp?cat=a&artist=Mr.+President&artist_search=starts&title=&title_search=starts. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
5. ^ ^{a b c} "Mr. President in Swedish charts". swedishcharts.com. Hung Medien. http://swedishcharts.com/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Mr%2E+President. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
6. ^ ^{a b} "Hitparade.ch: Mr. President (albums)" (in German). swisscharts.com. Hung Medien. http://www.swisscharts.com/search.asp?cat=a&artist=Mr.+President&artist_search=starts&title=&title_search=starts. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
7. ^ ^{a b} "Musiikkituottajat Tilastot: Mr. President" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. http://www.ifpi.fi/tilastot/artistit/mr.+president. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
8. ^ ^{a b} "Hitparade.ch: Mr President". Hitparade.ch. http://hitparade.ch/search_certifications.asp?search=Mr.+President. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
9. ^ "Charts.de: Mr. President (Singles)" (in German). Charts.de. Media Control. http://www.charts.de/search.asp?search=Mr.+President&x=0&y=11&cat=s&country=de. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
10. ^ "Mr. President in Australian charts". australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. http://australian-charts.com/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Mr%2E+President. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
11. ^ "Mr. President Dans Les Charts Francais". lescharts.com. Hung Medien. http://lescharts.com/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Mr%2E+President. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
12. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40: Mr. President". Dutch Top 40. http://www.top40.nl/search.aspx?keyword=Mr.%20President&jaar=2011&maand=7&week=31#. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
13. ^ "Hitparade.ch: Mr. President (singles)" (in German). swisscharts.com. Hung Medien. http://www.swisscharts.com/search.asp?cat=s&artist=Mr.+President&artist_search=starts&title=&title_search=starts. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
14. ^ "Chartstas.com: Mr. President)". Chartstas.com. http://www.chartstats.com/artistinfo.php?id=8128. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
15. ^ "Billboard.com: Mr. President (Hot 100)". Billboard. http://www.billboard.com/charts/hot-100#/artist/mr-president/chart-history/171781. Retrieved 2010-07-20. 
16. ^ ^{a b c d} "German certifications – Mr.+President" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. http://www.musikindustrie.de/gold_platin_datenbank/?action=suche&strTitel=&strInterpret=Mr.%2BPresident&strTtArt=alle&strAwards=checked. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
17. ^ "Australian Singles' Certifications 1997". ARIA. http://www.aria.com.au/pages/aria-charts-accreditations-singles-1997.htm. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
18. ^ "IFPI (Austria): Gold & Platin". IFPI Austria. http://www.ifpi.at/?section=goldplatin. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
19. ^ "Swedish Certifications 1987-1998". IFPI Sweden. http://www.ifpi.se/wp/wp-content/uploads/guld-platina-1987-1998.pdf. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 
20. ^ "BPI: Certified Awards Search". British Phonographic Industry. http://www.bpi.co.uk/certifiedawards/search.aspx. Retrieved 2011-08-09. 

External links

• Official website
• Official website (alternate)
• Mr. President at MySpace
• Mr. President at Euro Dance Hits.com