First Time Hearing NENA - “99 Red Balloons” Reaction | Asia and BJ

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  • Опубликовано: 12 дек 2023
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Комментарии • 283

  • @fabian4ever69
    @fabian4ever69 5 месяцев назад +255

    You HAVE to listen to the original German version. It doesn't matter if you don't speak the language the song is just great. The English version is weaker. This came out my sophomore year and yes, I was taking German 1. Lol I introduced it to my teacher and we listened to it in class and she printed out the lyrics in both languages. Awesome song!
    Nena has a great duet with another 80s artist Kim Wilde on the song "Anyplace, Anywhere, Anytime."

    • @brianfournierjr7438
      @brianfournierjr7438 5 месяцев назад +27

      I totally agree, The original version just sounds way better!

    • @matthewgreen6131
      @matthewgreen6131 5 месяцев назад +18

      I third this statement.

    • @moe92870
      @moe92870 5 месяцев назад +14

      I 4th

    • @nealm6764
      @nealm6764 5 месяцев назад +5

      The german version is better because you don't know how insipid the lyrics are, and you think it is something deep.

    • @paulonius42
      @paulonius42 5 месяцев назад +4

      ​@nealm6764 How are the lyrics insipid?

  • @WoodsintheBurg94
    @WoodsintheBurg94 5 месяцев назад +118

    This was an antiwar song. It wasn’t about the balloons or the color, it was about the tense situation between Western countries and the Soviet Bloc countries and how people felt nuclear conflict was a strong possibility. It suggested caution and diplomacy to keep small mistakes from escalating out of control.

    • @slutinawhorinskaya
      @slutinawhorinskaya 5 месяцев назад

      It's very obvious what the song is about.

    • @swtp32
      @swtp32 5 месяцев назад +9

      Definitely about nuclear threat we lived under in Cold War. Well articulated.

  • @NickHeaze
    @NickHeaze 5 месяцев назад +54

    As a cold war kid, this was pretty big eye opener that in fact this isn't about red balloons at all but nukes.

    • @user-ho6fe9un7u
      @user-ho6fe9un7u 5 месяцев назад +4

      You are one of very few of the commenters that understand this. We are a minority Nick.

  • @swfcocs1
    @swfcocs1 5 месяцев назад +86

    The original German version is "99 luft balloons" and was more explicitly an anti war/anti nuclear weapons song, the translation for the UK market lost some of the meaning. On a more basic level I remember every lad in my class has the biggest crush on Nena since Debbie Harry from Blondie first emerged in the UK charts 😅😅😅

    • @Taylorswiftfan13308
      @Taylorswiftfan13308 5 месяцев назад

      This German version/English version incident reminds me of another such song, the artist is Hubert Kah. In English, it is "The Picture" in German it is called "Wenn der Mond die Sonne berührt" Though I like the German original better, I personally think both versions are pretty great with that one and I think "The Picture" would be an option if you ever found yourselves scrambling for a song for in here one day.

    • @swfcocs1
      @swfcocs1 5 месяцев назад

      @Taylorswiftfan13308 yeah I remember that as well,you're right

    • @ianhamilton2035
      @ianhamilton2035 4 месяца назад +1

      I'm 62, and still have a crush on Nena!! 😃

    • @Treinbouwer
      @Treinbouwer Месяц назад

      Luftballons*

  • @CerebralAptitude
    @CerebralAptitude 5 месяцев назад +10

    99 Balloons was reference to a country thought the balloons in the air were bombs/missles by mistake and it is how the next World War started and every country was turned to dust by the end of the global war.

  • @TonyM1961
    @TonyM1961 5 месяцев назад +28

    Things to keep in mind about this song... Translation from one language to another always loses something. This came out toward the end of the Soviet Union. Germany was still divided in two, the wall was still up and the cold war was still happening. Put those together and her message about avoiding war and nuclear weapons takes on an entirely different perspective than we have today

  • @User2718218
    @User2718218 4 месяца назад +4

    It's about the world being in a continuous state of being on the edge of nuclear war. And the irony in harmless red balloons, something you would find in a children's birthday party, triggering the end of the world. In 1984 we were much closer to being on the edge of nuclear war than we are now, but it still is out there. One day in the 1980s a computer chip failed and it almost triggered the start of a nuclear war. The song is about living under the threat of The Bomb. And don't forget that in 1984 Germany was divided into two. Most people never thought that Germany would ever be reunited.

  • @halhortonsworld5870
    @halhortonsworld5870 5 месяцев назад +16

    The original German version '99 Luft Baloons' was actually the popular version here in USA. Back in the day, you heard it everywhere, and hardly ever heard the English version.

  • @mkmstillstackin
    @mkmstillstackin 5 месяцев назад +20

    This tune was MAMMOUTHLY HUGE back in the early days of MTV and (early 80's) I was a huge fan! I highly recommend listening to the German version too! Although I don't speak a lick of German, the lyrics just sound slightly cooler, for some reason. I love both versions though. Thanks for doing this one!

  • @thomascain8747
    @thomascain8747 5 месяцев назад +9

    I was an Army brat in Germany in the 70s and early 80s. We lived about 40 miles from the Warsaw Pact border between East and West Germany. There were always EDRE (Emeregency Deployment Readiness Excercises) which were scary enough and then there were also NEO (Nuclear Emergency Order) alerts. When the NEO alerts went off it was to simulate what would happen if the "balloon went up" which was a term for nuclear war. This song was very appropriate when it came out.

  • @bryanCJC2105
    @bryanCJC2105 5 месяцев назад +16

    Both the English and the original German versions were played on the radio. The German version is pretty cool and it was popular in clubs! Everyone liked it even though we had no idea what she was saying. There were a few songs that were popular here in both English and their original German. "Major Tom", "Rock Me Amadeus", "Trans Europa Express", "Da Da Da", and "Der Kommissar" were all big hits.

  • @joanlajara3939
    @joanlajara3939 5 месяцев назад +15

    So strange you’re doing this reaction! I told my sons about this song, they decided to play this song with their band, my younger son was lead singer and even learned how to sing in German!! One of my favorites!!two generations later!!

    • @christianbeuchling9546
      @christianbeuchling9546 5 месяцев назад

      ... das ist einfach nur ein scheisslied aus der "neuen deutschen welle zeit" sonst nix !!!

  • @surlechapeau
    @surlechapeau 5 месяцев назад +7

    Asia & BJ, excellent one-hit wonder in the US. 1983. She had several top 5 and top 40 hits in Europe. Catchy song.

  • @Yogdog69
    @Yogdog69 5 месяцев назад +6

    It is an anti war song, set during the end of the Cold War during the Reagan admin.. I was a Yank living on a US base (as a kid, not a soldier) in the UK when this song came out. Germany was (and largely still is) the front line of the Cold War. We (NATO and the US) had nukes pointed at the Soviet Union and the Soviets had them pointed at us, and both sides were nervous, with itchy trigger fingers poised over their respective Big Red Buttons, and the civilians of Germany (and the UK and any of the countries holding US bases) were scared of a Nuke war and having their homes turned into targets because there was a US (or NATO) base in their back yard.
    The red balloons were representative of a false warning (bright red and full of nothing but hot air)... something that could cause alarm and cause someone to make a big mistake, turning Germany and most of Europe into a radioactive slag heap. (In reality, the balloons probably would not trigger a warning, barely seen on radar if at all.

  • @Stick-a-fork-in-Gmorks-tort
    @Stick-a-fork-in-Gmorks-tort 5 месяцев назад +11

    NENA is still kicking ass especially live performances. I hardly get to listen to the English version so this was a treat. This inspired John Forte's - Ninety Nine (Flash The Message) Featuring Wyclef Jean, Pras & Jenny Fujita back in '99.

    • @Fritzw75
      @Fritzw75 5 месяцев назад +1

      Nena was a fox back in the early 80s for sure!

  • @FredPena-rd5cf
    @FredPena-rd5cf 5 месяцев назад +2

    Suddenly its 1981 again and I'm a teenager watching MTV.... those were the days!

  • @susanrombak7959
    @susanrombak7959 5 месяцев назад +8

    Yes, you are right-on Asia and BJ that the lyrics are regarding a warning or a story of impending war on the most simplistic or unreasonable reasons. When this song came out it was at the end of the Cold War and fall of Berlin Wall. We can’t forget that world in general has always been going through turbulent times and that hasteful decisions can end in disaster.

  • @kf9346
    @kf9346 3 месяца назад +3

    Growing up in the 80s, a lot of our time was spent worrying about nuclear war and a lot of music featured nuclear war or the Cold War in the songs somehow. (Every Christmas during my high school years I went to bed convinced the USSR would launch missiles that night). There was line dividing Western Europe-democratic, capitalist and allied to the US; from Eastern Europe, allied to the USSR and all communist. It was very hard to cross that line. We in North America (I’m from Canada) had about 30 mins to prepare once the nuclear sirens went off, but in Europe, they (both sides) had an average of 2 minutes warning. Ground zero for this really scary divide was Germany-3/4 of Germany was West Germany and allied to the US, but 1/4 was Est Germany and allied to the USSR. But, inside East Germany, most of Berlin was part of West Germany and surrounded by a wall. The world came close to nuclear war many times due to accidents and panics.
    This song is about an incident of balloons being released in West Berlin (totally surrounded by East Germany) and this setting off panic by the East German and USSR military, almost causing nuclear war. The irony of a kid’s simple pleasure of a balloon causing men of power to destroy the world underscored the stupidity of the nuclear arms race.

  • @WOranos
    @WOranos 5 месяцев назад +7

    The German version of this song played on local radio in Canada when it came out. It's a nice example of how much more diverse music was back in the 80s. I also remember the German version of Major Tom, Rock Me Amadeus and Vienna Calling, all getting air time on commercial radio. And Da Da Da, of course, but I don't think I ever actually heard the English version of it.

  • @eyepatch3769
    @eyepatch3769 5 месяцев назад +3

    Check out the video in her native German
    99 Luft Balloons

  • @marieneu264
    @marieneu264 4 месяца назад +1

    This song is so iconic. Her voice is amazing.

  • @jimglenn6972
    @jimglenn6972 5 месяцев назад +1

    99 Luftballons came out in 1984 almost at the time as the movie “Wargames” was released. They hit on a similar topic. Everyone was worried!

  • @michaelignatowicz9470
    @michaelignatowicz9470 5 месяцев назад +1

    This is one of those songs that will get stuck in your head all day once you hear it ! 😅

  • @chrisbricky7331
    @chrisbricky7331 5 месяцев назад +3

    The song is about a bunch of people attempting to flee East Germany during the cold war in home made balloons by flying over the Berlin Wall. It is not anti war, more anti communist. But like all opinions, that is mine. Chris

    • @swfcocs1
      @swfcocs1 5 месяцев назад

      As I recall the German lyrics supposedly allude to the 99 balloons being UFOs, not necessarily aliens but rather anything unidentified that sets off nuclear attacks and retaliation, though much of the meaning was supposedly lost in translation

  • @sliceofheaven3026
    @sliceofheaven3026 5 месяцев назад +1

    The song is symbolic. It was done at the time when germany was still divided into two separate nations (west and east germany aka DDR). There was an actual wall dividing west and east Berlin also from each other. The balloons are just a way to show how tragic the whole divided germany thing was in the first place. The situation was pretty tense at the border crossings in the decades following the second world war.

  • @AuntieNina68
    @AuntieNina68 4 месяца назад +1

    I was in high school when this came out. I still love 80s music, but I'm more hip-hip, r&b. This song was cute, for a minute.

  • @MoHawk_1970
    @MoHawk_1970 3 месяца назад

    One of those songs that as soon as you hear it, your back in the mid eighties!!

  • @richardvincelette9741
    @richardvincelette9741 4 месяца назад +1

    The bass breakdown in this song is fire 🔥

  • @jjr9792
    @jjr9792 Месяц назад +1

    It was about something accidentally starting WW3 during the cold war. Apparently it was written about a bunch of balloons released at a music festival, some started floating towards/over the Berlin Wall, and they thought "OMG, what if something like this was misread by the other side (USSR) as an "attack", and triggered a nuclear response. The English version "Bugs in the software" likely relates to an actual incident when the nuclear "computers" in the US went nuts, and went all the way to defcon 2 by themselves, and had to be manually overwritten to stop them from going to Defcon 1 and potentially launching nukes.

  • @jopangan8601
    @jopangan8601 5 месяцев назад +5

    I remember the first time listening to this song in the German version and liked it. It was nice to finally get the English version out so I could understand what they were saying. However, I still liked the German version. You really should watch the original video.

  • @AJfanboy1
    @AJfanboy1 5 месяцев назад +4

    The song meaning...
    Growing up during the Cold War, especially in West Germany, was a conflicted time. The constant threat of nuclear war made Karges (the writer of the song) appreciate the little moments in life. In 1982 during The Rolling Stones concert at The Forest Theatre, Karges witnessed something that would change his life.
    During the concert, they released hundreds of balloons. The wind carried the balloons out of the open-air theatre and into the night air. Karges wondered what the people in the surrounding area, and in East Germany, made of the balloons.
    Coupled with a story about high school students releasing 100 weather balloons but only finding 99, Karges had his inspiration. And this was the moment that 99 Luftballons was born.
    The German lyrics for the song are about two countries at war with each other. One of whom sees the balloons and assumes they’re under attack. They send out fighter pilots, the other country responds. War ministers in each country encourage the war as a power grab.
    A cataclysmic war results and lasts for 99 years. At the end of the war, the singer discovers a balloon in the wreckage. They pick it up and send it off in memory of those lost. They fought 99 years of war with no winners.
    The English version of the song follows the sentiment but changes the lyrics and tells a slightly different story. The singer and her friend release 99 helium balloons into the sky. The balloons are picked up by an early warning system and begin a nuclear war. The ending of the song is basically the same as the German version.

  • @janethernandez724
    @janethernandez724 5 месяцев назад +1

    Congratulation, you reacted to the English version of this song. Asia you got it right it a warning, and BJ you too are right the balloons do symbolize something, the many hopes and dreams of so many lives. Initially when this song was released in German we loved it and we had no idea what it was about and then we had a clue when we saw the Official video, yes, visually we had that clue! Eventually the English version of the song came out; this came out during the cold war years in the 1980s. Germany was still divided, East Germany and West Germany are separated by the what was then the Berlin wall According to the song facts website, the following information was the inspiration for this song: Nena's guitarist, Carlo Karges, got the idea for the song at a Rolling Stones concert in West Berlin. At one point during the show, the band released a bunch of balloons. Carlo watched as one of those balloons drifted over the wall into East Berlin. He imagined a radar picking up that one balloon and mistaking it for an enemy plane. Carlo wrote the lyric and Nena's keyboard player, Uwe Fahrenkrog-Petersen, wrote the music. The German version of this song still gets play on the radio these days just so you know. I enjoyed watching your reaction! Peace. ☮

  • @AmyW-qo4se
    @AmyW-qo4se 5 месяцев назад +1

    Listened to this a lot growing up and have it on my play list now. Great song!

  • @blagoyavichrod
    @blagoyavichrod 3 месяца назад +2

    Your generation has NO idea how close we were in the 80s of actual nuclear war. Those of us growing up in the 80s didn’t fear nuclear war, we waited for it.

    • @DrSpoculus
      @DrSpoculus 21 день назад

      And nothing happened. You didn't live through anything we don't live through today..

  • @kelleewolfe2834
    @kelleewolfe2834 4 месяца назад

    OMG!! Such a FLASHBACK!!

  • @j.woodbury412
    @j.woodbury412 4 месяца назад +4

    According to Wikipedia, the song was inspired by a June 1982 Rolling Stones concert in West Berlin. Nena's guitarist Carlo Karges noticed balloons being released in the air and as he watched them move toward the horizon, he saw them shift and change shapes until they looked like strange spacecraft. and he imagined one of them drifting over the Berlin Wall and into the Soviet sector and being mistaken for a spy balloon and starting a nuclear war. The German title "99 Luftballons" actually translates as "99 Air Balloons", but when it was released in English, the phrase "Air Balloons" was changed to "Red Balloons"

  • @MichaelVHart
    @MichaelVHart 4 месяца назад +1

    Nena has had an amazing career in Germany. I like her new stuff, too. Despite being busy wit her career, she raised 5 children.

    • @JJ-qh5dn
      @JJ-qh5dn 3 месяца назад

      4 but who's counting. 4 they all have played in her band.

  • @mistyanderson4567
    @mistyanderson4567 5 месяцев назад

    I remember watching the video of this song on MTV as a teenager 🤗

  • @jkbezo1
    @jkbezo1 4 месяца назад +3

    Fun new wave punk band and song. This was a German band. When we were kids in the '80s we were scared of nuclear war. Cold War. Lot of songs back then had this kind of theme. You guys are good at figuring it out! In the '70, '80s, and early '90s the constant threat of nuclear war between the East (Russia, East Germany, Japan, China, Korea, etc) and West (UK, USA, West Germany, Canada, France, etc) was fearful. Songs and movies had fun but sad meaning during those times.

  • @tasha7094
    @tasha7094 5 месяцев назад

    I was stationed in Germany in the early 80s and saw her at a music festival. She was great live.

  • @djyanno
    @djyanno 5 месяцев назад +1

    This song reminds me so great memories of my childhood. It's crazy how one song can give you clear and vivid memories of events happening 40 years ago

  • @JDogg1971
    @JDogg1971 5 месяцев назад +2

    Wow. Haven’t heard this song in a minute! Very different song but it got big for a while back in the day. Great share and reaction! 🤓🤠

  • @Bekka_Noyb
    @Bekka_Noyb 5 месяцев назад +1

    Early 80s might be my fave era for pop music! dbl ♥

  • @jayconant3816
    @jayconant3816 5 месяцев назад +1

    Golden age of mtv with this song ,this one hit wonder was all over the radio ,mall ,public pool back in the day, very fun time for music

  • @macalcord
    @macalcord 5 месяцев назад +2

    Man the change ups in this song are so good!

  • @The_Kiosk
    @The_Kiosk 5 месяцев назад +3

    Remember that when this came out, the Berlin Wall was still up, and she's from West Germany, which was free, but the Cold War was in full effect and this was a powerful anti-war paranoia message that got played everywhere. The German language version also charted.
    I'd recommend Scorpions "Wind of Change" if you haven't reacted to it.

  • @CdnTrader1
    @CdnTrader1 5 месяцев назад +8

    The German version is better. You also need the video.

  • @quincee3376
    @quincee3376 4 месяца назад +2

    Classic. I actually prefer the German original. I don't speak German but it was awesome. This English version too!!

  • @tamerafletcher2488
    @tamerafletcher2488 4 месяца назад +1

    We did this at karaoke when the Chinese balloon turned up!

  • @dickleijen7761
    @dickleijen7761 4 месяца назад

    Asia and BJ merry Christmas and a happy new 3 from the NETHERLANDS!

  • @johndrx165
    @johndrx165 5 месяцев назад

    This was ALWAYS on MTV in the early days.

  • @user-fj8id4mn9q
    @user-fj8id4mn9q 5 месяцев назад

    Not sure how old you guys are but it made perfect sense in the 80’s, hard to describe to someone who doesn’t remember what it was like before the wall came down.

  • @brians2869
    @brians2869 4 месяца назад +1

    I love this song in both languages... Esp as a cold war kid

  • @deniackeridge5273
    @deniackeridge5273 5 месяцев назад +2

    Definitely listen to the German version and watch the video.

  • @susanneschwarz7104
    @susanneschwarz7104 3 месяца назад

    Btw John Forté sampled that in his song 99 ninety nine (flash the message) and Goldfinger made a Cover-Version of it.
    Nena is still a great Star in Germany and she will go on Tour in 2024. Check out her albums Licht, Oldschool, Nichts versäumt, Du bist gut, Cover me, Willst du mit mir gehen, It's all in the game, Fragezeichen, Feuer und Flamme, International Album, Chockmah, Live SO36, and much more...

  • @serbianhammer
    @serbianhammer 2 месяца назад

    I've always assumed it's Asia singing in the intro right? Anyway the harmonies are so good.

  • @JJ-qh5dn
    @JJ-qh5dn 3 месяца назад

    Great fun pop song with a serious underlying message.

  • @lexyabby9
    @lexyabby9 5 месяцев назад

    I loved this song when it came out 🎉

  • @edwardlaw7589
    @edwardlaw7589 5 месяцев назад

    They are absolutely jamming out with this song

  • @killrinstinx4148
    @killrinstinx4148 5 месяцев назад

    Just caught your reaction y'all. As a kid of the 80s, the rivalry between the USA and Soviet Union was big. And there was concern over nuclear war. So as my understanding went...... You can hear her talking about generals, calling out the troops, 99 red balloons was a reference to nuclear missiles being launched. Awesome song. I still listen to it

  • @wildk4tmc421
    @wildk4tmc421 5 месяцев назад

    I LOVE THIS TRACK! Enjoy ❤

  • @jndfan
    @jndfan 5 месяцев назад

    Oh wow! This was the early days of MTV. The year I graduated from high school I believe. 1983. Good stuff!! Oh the memories. This was the time of the cold war.

  • @stevenmcanales3813
    @stevenmcanales3813 4 месяца назад +2

    Nuclear Missiles!!!!!
    99 red balloons = 99 Nuclear missiles!!!!! Anti-war song

  • @seanwoods4883
    @seanwoods4883 5 месяцев назад +1

    This song was written before the Berlin wall came down and the people were freed from the soviet oppression. They were messing with the communists on the other side of the wall.

  • @AdamBazille
    @AdamBazille 5 месяцев назад +1

    Need to listen to the original version!

  • @ninaclausen5467
    @ninaclausen5467 5 месяцев назад +1

    Go listen to the original song in German! I became a fan of Nena in 1983 and I still go to her concerts. She’s a great performer and every concert is amazing 🤩 Greetings from Denmark 🙂

  • @Noelle0026
    @Noelle0026 5 месяцев назад

    This one brings back memories of 1983

  • @jamesbogacki4453
    @jamesbogacki4453 5 месяцев назад

    I saw them at a free concert at a park on Milwaukee Lakefront.The biggest musical festival in the U.S.is Summerfest I haven't been there in few years had big names at all stages. Also i remember Journey was the opening day act on the Main Stage for like 4 or 5 years straight.I remember that because all the girls wanted to go .

  • @DopeSauceBenevolence
    @DopeSauceBenevolence 5 месяцев назад

    I genuinely had no idea there was an English version of this. Holly crap.

  • @dalehoward3704
    @dalehoward3704 3 месяца назад

    Awesome Song❤❤❤❤❤❤

  • @BornRandy62
    @BornRandy62 5 месяцев назад

    those floating baloons filled with helium are made from Mylar for the most part. Those would definitely be displayed on radar. However. As former military radar operator , balloons would not fit the threat profile for a alert.
    I did track a scud missile during Desert Storm.. It started off as having zero course and speed but the altimeter was spinning off the dial. By the time the track was headed down range it was already above the maximum altitude allowed by international treaty. We kept track on it downrange until it dropped below the magic number and the Patriot Site could establish track and shoot. The black helicopters arrived in the morning to collect the radar data collection tapes.

  • @claudballs5679
    @claudballs5679 4 месяца назад

    I have heard this song thousands of times and that's the first time I've heard it in English, how did that happen. I had no idea it was a war song

  • @susanneschwarz7104
    @susanneschwarz7104 3 месяца назад

    Real facts: On 8.June 1982 the Rolling Stones played an Open Air Concert at West Berlin "Waldbühne" and at the end of the show they let go up hundreds of balloons into the sky. 🎈🎈The wind blowed them over the Berlin wall to East Germany. The Guitar Player of the NENA Band named Carlo Karges visited that concert and saw these balloons flowing over the Berlin wall. It was the time during the Cold War between East and West. And he thougt what would happen if the radar in the East Sector will cause an alarm, because of the balloons not identified as balloons but as unidentified objects "UFOs". Would they send jets and pilots like Captain Kirk to shoot them down? What would the War-Ministers do? Could such missunderstandings like balloons start a war and the result would be a destroyed city/world only dust is left? ......
    This inspired him to write the lyrics for this song.
    The German original version tells the complete meaning.
    Unfotunately the English translation looses a lot of it.
    The Band choose 99, becuase it fits to the the rhythm.
    The balloons were real and the fear of a war was big there in Germany in the 80ies during the cold war.
    But the balloons are also a symbol for little things that can cause missunderstandings and trouble and maybe a war between countries.

  • @jlf8570
    @jlf8570 5 месяцев назад

    Memories!

  • @misadventuresofmorgan
    @misadventuresofmorgan 5 месяцев назад

    You missed the part where she said that there was a glitch in the system.. the song is a cautionary tale about war and how little it takes to set it off..

  • @leew6091
    @leew6091 5 месяцев назад

    Its just having fun while the world ends. this song is so happy yet sad

  • @matthewenies3668
    @matthewenies3668 5 месяцев назад

    Germany was in the middle of protests when this song was released over the deployment of US missiles aimed at the Soviet Union. So, this song was all about war and peace

  • @Michael-xk3sp
    @Michael-xk3sp 4 месяца назад

    Luv u guyz

  • @carlbaker7242
    @carlbaker7242 4 месяца назад +1

    Yall know this song never left my Playlist. Why? Because I like it!!!

  • @Caderynwolf
    @Caderynwolf 5 месяцев назад

    So, this song came out before the berlin wall fell (1989, and I still remember it), the song itself is related to the division of east and west germany, the height of tensions in europe between the two opposing sides, and the releasing the balloons was enough to ignite war, the balloons themselves are the hopes and dreams and future lost to war. How people that were friends and family are segregated and become enemies. It's telling you there's a better way through freedom and being united while voicing to those in power that violence wont solve anything. Basically it's rage against the cold war, those in charge, for the potential for it to turn "hot" over even the smallest thing.

    • @Caderynwolf
      @Caderynwolf 5 месяцев назад

      And yes, as others have said, you should listen to the original german version.

  • @laurawallis7093
    @laurawallis7093 24 дня назад

    In the video they were actually setting off real bombs in the background

  • @turdferguson3475
    @turdferguson3475 4 месяца назад +1

    The point is that missile defense systems mistakenly identified the ballons as an incoming attack, and responded with their own missiles, inadvertently starting World War 3 and destroying civilization.

    • @JJ-qh5dn
      @JJ-qh5dn 3 месяца назад

      somewhat they were ,UFO's (unidentified flying objects) not aliens, and not missiles. They sent up jet fighters to see what they were, and things escalated from there.

  • @markzucker4320
    @markzucker4320 5 месяцев назад

    During the Eighties, there were times when tensions were high between us and the former Soviet Union. The song makes the point, that because of those tensions, something as simple as a bunch of balloons, could potentially trigger world war III and nuclear armageddon. This almost happened in 1983. An early warning center in the USSR detected incoming missiles from the west. The officer on duty, per protocol, was to alert his superiors, he chose to ignore the warning. It turned out to be a false alarm. There is a good chance, had he followed orders, we would not be here now.

  • @Badfourgood
    @Badfourgood 4 месяца назад

    exact translationfrom german.....
    Do you have some time for me?
    Then I'll sing a song for you
    Of 99 balloons
    On their way to the horizon
    Maybe you're thinking about me just now?
    Then I'll sing a song for you
    Of 99 balloons
    And that something like that comes from something like that
    99 balloons
    On their way to the horizon
    They were thought to be UFOs from space
    That's why a general sent
    A flying squadron behind
    To sound the alarm if that were the case
    There was one there on the horizon
    Only 99 balloons
    99 jet planes
    Everyone was a great warrior
    Thought they were Captain Krik
    There was a big fireworks display
    the neighbours did not get this
    And they immediately felt turned on
    There was a shot at the horizon
    On 99 balloons
    99 Minister of War
    Matchstick and jerrycans
    They thought they were smart people
    smelled a big hunt
    Cried: “War!” and wanted power
    Man, who would have thought?
    That it will come to this one day
    because of 99 balloons
    because of 99 balloons
    99 balloons
    99 years of war
    Left no room for winners
    There is no longer a Minister of War
    And no jet planes either
    Today I'm doing my rounds
    See the world in ruins
    Found a balloon
    Think of yourself and let it fly

  • @Firefly-101
    @Firefly-101 11 дней назад

    Doubt any will read this 4 months later, but the song was inspired by a real incident where a flock of Geese triggered Norad that Nuclear Missiles were inbound. They almost launched a counter strike, thus starting WW3, the russians around the same time had their own issue where a solar flare caused their system to think 1 ICBM was heading toward Moscow, the operator correctly realized why would the US fire only 1 missile. Instead of being rewarded he was fired by the USSR.

  • @deeboy4378
    @deeboy4378 5 месяцев назад

    The song was originally released in German, it did so well im America they recorded an English version. . .
    . I would like to recommend some music,
    "Rehab, sittin at the bar" . And/or Anything From"Sublime"
    . . . Im a regular on y'all's movie reaction channel.

  • @nathans3241
    @nathans3241 3 месяца назад

    A comedic version of this song is called, 99 Dead Baboons.

  • @BrianBogiaBricky
    @BrianBogiaBricky 5 месяцев назад

    Do you like music in general? This guitarist is amazing. I was shocked and amazed when I first saw him play. Marcin - Kashmir on One Guitar (Official Video). To give you a hint on how good he is. Most guitarist plays the strings he plays the WHOLE guitar.

  • @Michael-xk3sp
    @Michael-xk3sp 4 месяца назад +1

    1st time listening to lyrics. Anti-war and funny- Wow!!

  • @memorylanemodelcars
    @memorylanemodelcars 5 месяцев назад +1

    BJ & Asia Song is About 2 Girls Celebrating ones Birthday by Launching 99 Helium Filled Balloons for Fun But it Causes a Military Panic unexpectedly Bena Did 2 Versions of This Song a American Version & Gernan Version

  • @westtxmutt
    @westtxmutt 5 месяцев назад

    It's about 99 million getting blown to bits in a nuclear war. Really dark song.

  • @kw1333
    @kw1333 3 месяца назад

    "In this dust that was a city......if I could find a souvenir just to prove the world was here": haunting and poignant.

  • @nathanswain3011
    @nathanswain3011 3 месяца назад

    This song was based on a Theory that has been around since Russia exploded her first nuclear bomb: And then there were two powers with nuclear weapons: The US and The Soviet Union. Mutual Deterrence. If you bomb us, we're coming right back at you, we might be gone but you will be gone too. So don't try it, and OK, we won't either, We'll just shoot one another with bullets, and sink ships, take ground, etc. Then the great scientists figured out, Wait a minute, when the Balloon goes up (which is an old military saying, meaning serious conflict breaks out suddenly), it could very well happen by accident. Each side only has 20 minutes or so to decide to respond or not. It could be a Pearl Harbor type Sneak attack, trying to catch us (or them) off guard. All that is known is that what looks like a bunch of missiles moving across the Bering Straight, then one side responds, and then the other side responds, and then what does it matter once we're all destroyed, Life on Earth is dead or dying, what does it matter that it was just a large flock of birds, or possibly 99 Red Balloons some kids set off from a park somewhere. Unfortunately, its an all too real nightmare scenario. God save us.

  • @WoodsintheBurg94
    @WoodsintheBurg94 5 месяцев назад

    I remember the German version was released first and was very popular before the English version got airplay.

  • @brians2869
    @brians2869 4 месяца назад +1

    For me, as a kid in the eighties... I always thought it was a sign of love to the people over the wall... We're sending you these balloons, but it gets misinterpreted as an invasion

  • @BP__15
    @BP__15 5 месяцев назад

    Y’all may have heard 99 Luftballons sampled on John Forte’s song “Ninety Nine (Flash The Message) which featured Wyclef Jean & Pras of the Fugees and a lady named Jenny Fujita. 🔥🔥🔥 a$$ track and great use of the original song imo 👍🏽👍🏽.

  • @Stover205
    @Stover205 21 день назад

    "In the dust that was a city"

  • @darrencorder3671
    @darrencorder3671 5 месяцев назад +1

    It was about east vs west berlin germany during the free vs communist sides.

  • @jarretthoward4593
    @jarretthoward4593 5 месяцев назад +1

    This song came out in the '80s when the Soviet Union and the USA and NATO were at all time high with tensions building would nuclear arms and then fearing that world war III would happen and nuclear holocaust would be upon the world

  • @mikerobinson9168
    @mikerobinson9168 5 месяцев назад

    Hearing this song again made me think of the movie "The Day After" and another movie called "Threads". These movies were made when a nuclear war seemed almost inevitable.

    • @kw1333
      @kw1333 3 месяца назад

      Me too. Always think of the scene in The Day After when the guy is running down the country road and is vaporized.