Anna-Maria Zimmermann

Born on December 14, 1988, in Gütersloh, German singer Anna-Maria Zimmermann made her first television appearance at age five on the Mini Playback Show, delivering a rendition of Stefanie Hertel’s “Oma, Du Verstehst Mich Nich.” Six years later she auditioned for the third season of Deutschland Sucht den Superstar and finished in sixth position. Her first commercial release, the 2007 single “Der Erste Kuss” recorded with the band Jojos, preceded a contract with Universal the following year. The follow-up track “Wer Ist Dieser DJ?” peaked at number 66 on the German singles chart.

After moving to EMI in 2009 she issued several additional singles, among them the Tornerò-titled “1000 Träume Weit,” which reached number 68, and the Milva cover “Hurra Wir Leben Noch,” which climbed to number 79. While traveling by helicopter in October 2010 to accept the Ballermann Award, Zimmermann, her manager, and an assistant were involved in a crash that left every passenger and the pilot seriously injured; the singer remained in a coma for eighteen days yet eventually made a complete recovery. Her debut album Einfach Anna! arrived in December 2010, its lead single “Frei Sein” debuting at number 69 even though the LP itself did not enter the charts. Following months of recuperation she resumed live performances in June 2011, and early the next year her second solo album Hautnah entered the German charts at number 47, supported by the singles “Leben” and “Mit Dir.”