Capital Bra

Vladislav Balovatsky[4] (Ukrainian: Владислав Баловацкий, born 23 November 1994), known professionally as Capital Bra (German pronunciation: ['kapitaːl bra]) and informally as Capital, Capi and Joker Bra, is a German rapper of Ukrainian and Russian descent. Born in a small town in Siberia, Russia and raised in Dnipropetrovsk in Ukraine, he and his mother moved to Berlin, Germany in the early 2000s.[5] He started rapping at age eleven and participated at Rap am Mittwoch in 2014, a German battle rap tournament. Intent on pursuing a solo career as a rapper, Capital Bra released his first studio album Kuku Bra in January 2016 to minor commercial success in Germany. The follow-ups Makarov Complex and Blyat were released in February and September 2017 and peaked in the Top 5 of German-speaking Europe. His fourth studio album, Berlin lebt (2018), peaked at number one in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and the follow-up Allein (2018), debuted at number two on the German album charts. Balovatsky is the most successful charting German act of the 21st Century, with twenty number-one songs in Germany.

Capital Bra
Balovatsky during a concert, as part of his "Blyat"–Tour, in the Hirsch, Nuremberg, Bavaria, Germany in February 2018
Born
Vladislav Balovatsky

(1994-11-23) 23 November 1994
Siberia, Russia
NationalityUkrainian[1][2]
Other names
  • Smia One
  • Capital
  • Bra
  • Joker Bra
Occupation
  • Rapper
  • songwriter
  • entrepreneur
Years active2009–present
Home townBerlin, Germany
Children2
Musical career
GenresGangsta rap, Trap, Cloud rap[3]
InstrumentsVocals
Labels
Former
Associated acts

Outside of music, Balovatsky criticized the German political party Alternative for Germany (AfD),[6] compared himself with Russian president Vladimir Putin[7] and spoke out about social injustice.[8]

Biography

1994–2014: Early life and Rap am Mittwoch

Vladislav Balovatsky was born on 23 November 1994 in Siberia, Russia to Ukrainian[1] parents, who worked in the petroleum industry. At a young age Balovatsky and his parents moved to Dnipropetrovsk in Ukraine. Balovatsky's mother decided to move to Germany in 2001 to find a better life for her son.[1] They settled in Alt-Hohenschönhausen, Berlin, where Balovatsky spent his youth.[5] His father stayed in Ukraine. He played soccer for Berliner FC Dynamo.[9] Under the pseudonym "Smia One", Balotavtsky uploaded his first music video onto YouTube in 2009.[10] He rose to prominence in German underground rap through Rap am Mittwoch, a German battle rap tournament where he participated in a number of battles. His last competition against Master Marv was the most-watched Rap am Mittwoch battle on YouTube, with more than 7.8 million views as of January 2019.[11][9] Following his win, Balovatsky announced his departure from Rap am Mittwoch.[12] In March, Balovatsky released his first single "Bra".[12]

2015–2017: First three albums
Balovatsky in an interview in early 2017.

Balovatsky, at this time known as Capital, announced his first release Kuku Bra on 1 December 2015, through the single "Bra macht die Uzi".[13] Three more singles have been released, including "Kuku Habibi", "Fluchtwagen glänzen" and "Kreide", all three alongside German rapper King Khalil. None of them entered the charts however and the album was released on 29 January 2016 through Baba City, Chapter One and distributed through Universal.[14] The album debuted at No. 32 on the German album chart on issue dated 19 February 2016.[15] and No. 61 on the Austrian album charts.[16] His second studio album was announced less than a year later in November 2016.[17] The first single of the album, "Ala Ba Ba" featuring Ufo361 was released in mid December 2016.[18] The second single "Es geht ums Geschäft", released in January 2017 and became his first song to enter the German single charts, reaching number 76.[19] The following two singles "Geld machen" and "Die Echten" didn't enter the charts. Makarov Komplex was released on 3 February 2017, through Auf!Keinen!Fall!, Chapter One and Team Kuku. The album debuted within the top five in German-speaking Europe. It reached the top of the charts on the Austrian album charts and the German hip-hop album charts.[20][21]

Three months later, he released his unannounced second EP Ibrakadabra. It included five tracks, all produced by Saven Musiq and written by Balovatsky. Commercially, the EP charted at No. 77 in Switzerland. Balovatsky announced his third studio album Blyat on 16 June 2017, through Facebook.[22] The album was supported by six singles, including "Nur noch Gucci" and "Olé olé", which became his first singles to be certified gold by the Bundesverband Musikindustrie in early 2018.[23][24] The album was released on 29 September 2017, through Team Kuku and Auf!Keinen!Fall!. The album debuted within the top five in German-speaking Europe. It spent 50 weeks on the German, 25 on the Austrian and five on the Swiss album charts. In February and March 2018, he went on a 16-date German-speaking Europe tour, alongside King Khalil.[25]

2018: Mainstream success and split from Team Kuku

Balovatsky was featured on "Power", by German rapper Ufo361, which peaked at number seven in Germany. He announced Berlin lebt, his fourth studio album on 26 March 2018 with a teaser on YouTube.[26] The teaser features Balovatsky performing in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin.[27] The first single of the album, "5 Songs in einer Nacht" was released on 6 April 2018.[28] The single became Balovatsky's first single to top the German single charts on 13 April 2018.[29] The three follow-up singles "Neymar", "One Night Stand" and "Berlin lebt", all topped the charts in Germany and Austria. Berlin lebt was released on 22 June 2018 and became Balovatsky's first album to top the charts in German-speaking Europe.[30] A week prior, he split from his record label Team Kuku, citing differences in interest.[31][32] In early July, German rapper Bushido released "Für euch alle", alongside Balovatsky and fellow rapper Samra, confirming Balovatsky signing to Bushido's label ersguterjunge.[33] In an interview, released in March 2019, he explained his decision: "Bushido wanted to do a song with me so we talked. Signing with him had little to do with himself, but with his team." He went on explaining that Samra was a decisive reason for his signing.[34] In the end of July, he teased "Melodien", a song with Juju from the rap duo SXTN. "Melodien", was released in early August and became his first song to top the charts in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The single also broke the record for most streams in one day and one week in Germany, accumulating more than 1,9 million and 9,7 million streams respectively.[35]

The limited boxset of Bushido's thirteenth studio album Mythos included the Fickt euch alle EP (Fuck you all EP) by Capital Bra, which was released on 28 September 2018.[36] Balovatsky announced his fifth studio album, Allein, on 20 August 2018 on Instagram,[37] which was made available for digital download and streaming on 2 November 2018, as his last release through Team Kuku.[38] The album debuted at number two on 9 November 2018.[39] In early November, Balovatsky created his own YouTube channel, where he began regularly uploading freetracks. Since February 2019, the channel is also used for all of his and Samra's singles.[40] Apple Music and Spotify ranked Berlin lebt as the most-streamed album in Germany for 2018.[41][42] Five of his music videos, released in 2018, ranked in the top ten of the most-viewed videos in Germany on YouTube.[43]

2019–present: Bra Music and collaborations with Samra
Main articles: CB6 (album) and Berlin lebt 2

His sixth studio album CB6 was announced on 21 December 2018, through the music video of the first single "Benzema".[44][45] The single became his eight single to reach the top of the charts in Germany.[46] Balovatsky was signed to the Universal Music Group in January 2019 and left ersguterjunge on 22 January.[47][48] The second single of the album, "Prinzessa", partly recorded in Russian, was released on 25 January and again debuted atop the German single chart.[49][50] Balovatsky founded his own label Bra Music in March and announced a collaborative studio album with Samra, scheduled for release in 2019.[51] Following a small dispute with Dieter Bohlen, he released a cover of Modern Talking's ""Cheri, Cheri Lady".[52][53]

His album CB6 was scheduled for release on 26 April, but was released digitally two weeks earlier on 12 April, following a leak of the record.[54] In May, he became the most streamed artist in Germany, accumulating more than 1.4 billion streams, breaking the record previously set by Ed Sheeran.[55] Furthermore, "Cherry Lady" accumulated the most streams in Germany across all platforms ever, with 11.5 million in its first week. All of his songs were streamed 66 million times in the week in Germany.[56] On May 1, Balovatsky performed in Ravensburg, Baden-Württemberg as part of his Gucciland–Tour. Shortly before the start of the concert, two teenagers were attacked with knives; no people were harmed.[57]

His first collaborative album with Samra and follow-up to his first 2018 album, Berlin lebt was announced in May and was released on 4 October 2019.[58][59] The first single of the album "Tilidin" was released in late June and became the most-streamed song in Germany within a day with three million, and the most in one week with about 15 million.[60] In July, GfK Entertainment reported that "Benzema" and "Prinzessa" ranked in the top five of the best-performing singles of the first half of 2019.[61]

Musical style

Capital Bra's musical style has been described as gangster rap, cloud rap and trap. According to Rap.de one of his trademarks are East Slavic and Arabic words.[3]

Discography
Main articles: Capital Bra discography, List of songs recorded by Capital Bra, and Capital Bra videography

Awards and nominations
Awards Year Nominne / work Award Result Ref.
Hiphop.de Awards 2018 Berlin lebt Bestes Album National Nominated [62]
"Neymar" Bester Song National Nominated
"Für euch alle" Beste Line Nominated
Capital Bra Bester Rap-Solo-Act National Won
gollark: I *hope* that's a typo.
gollark: You'd really expect secret <:illum:531316942443642880> microchip designers to be able to do a better job.
gollark: Do they know *anything* about lions?
gollark: I mean, I dislike it because it's mostly a waste of money.
gollark: So suncream is... a thing you're encouraged to use.

References
  1. "Capital Bra: LX, Bonez MC, Olexesh, Ufo361, Ukraine, russischer Rap & Fame (Interview)" [Capital Bra: LX, Bonez MC, Olexesh, Ufo361, Ukraine, russian rap & fame (Interview)] (in German). Hiphop.de. 17 January 2017. Archived from the original on 9 December 2018. Retrieved 13 November 2018 – via YouTube.
  2. Ruge, Lili (8 May 2018). "Neuer Streamingrekord: Das Erfolgskonzept von Capital Bra" [New streaming record: The success from Capital Bra] (in German). Puls Musik. Archived from the original on 25 September 2018. Retrieved 9 December 2018.
  3. Richter, Louis (15 February 2016). "Capital – Kuku Bra" (in German). Rap.de. Archived from the original on 19 August 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2018.
  4. Garus, Tom (22 April 2018). "Berliner Rapper in Spotify-Charts: Wer dieser Capital Bra ist" [Berlin rapper in the Spotify Charts: Who is Capital Bra] (in German). rbb24. Archived from the original on 11 May 2019. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
  5. "Capital Bra – Steckbrief/Biografie" [Capital Bra – Characteristics/Biography] (in German). Radio Monster. 8 September 2018. Archived from the original on 13 November 2018. Retrieved 13 November 2018.
  6. "Klartext: Capital Bra über Helene Fischer und die AfD [Video]" [Plain text: Capital Bra about Helene Fischer and the AfD [Video]] (in German). Hiphop.de. 4 October 2018. Archived from the original on 10 December 2018. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
  7. "Capital: "Ich bin der Putin des Deutschrap"" [Capital: "I'm the putin of German rap"] (in German). Backspin. 29 January 2016. Archived from the original on 10 December 2018. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
  8. Richter, Louis (10 February 2016). "Interview mit Capital über "Kuku Bra"" [Interview with Capital about "Kuku Bra"] (in German). Rap.de. Archived from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 14 December 2018.
  9. Johann Voigt (3 June 2016). "Capital: »Wenn es mit Musik nicht klappt, mache ich eben wieder Sachen auf der Straße, Bra« // HipHope". Juice. Archived from the original on 14 April 2018. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
  10. "Capital Bra hat schon als kleines Kind gerappt" (in German). Raptastisch. 3 May 2018. Archived from the original on 24 January 2019. Retrieved 24 January 2019.
  11. "Rap am Mittwoch: Capital Bra vs Master Marv 04.02.15 BattleMania Finale (4/4) German Battle" (in German). 12 February 2015. Archived from the original on 23 August 2018. Retrieved 19 January 2019 – via YouTube.
  12. Senger, Clark (27 September 2017). "Von Rap Am Mittwoch in die Charts: Capital Bras Karriere in 4 Phasen" (in German). HipHop.de. Archived from the original on 19 January 2019. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
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  21. "Offizielle Deutsche Charts – Top 20 Hiphop Charts 10. Februar 2017 (Makarov Complex)" [Official german charts – top 20 hip hop charts (Makarov Komplex)] (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. 10 February 2017. Archived from the original on 28 October 2018. Retrieved 24 October 2018.
  22. "Capital Bra kündigt neues Album für dieses Jahr an" [Capital Bra announces new album forn this year] (in German). 16Bars. 16 June 2017. Archived from the original on 18 June 2018. Retrieved 4 November 2018.
  23. "Gold-/Platin Datenbank (Capital Bra; "Nur noch Gucci")" [Gold and platinum database (Capital Bra; "Nur noch Gucci")]. Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Archived from the original on 9 December 2018. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
  24. "Capital Bra feiert seine ersten goldenen Schallplatten" [Capital Bra celebrates his first gold records] (in German). Raptastisch. 25 March 2018. Archived from the original on 14 April 2018. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
  25. B., Tyler (6 October 2017). "Capital Bra Tour Tickets 2018 sichern" (in German). Boutblank. Archived from the original on 10 December 2018. Retrieved 26 March 2019.
  26. "Capital Bra kündigt Album "Berlin lebt" für Juni an" [Capital Bra announces "Berlin lebt" for June] (in German). Rap.de. 26 March 2018. Archived from the original on 14 April 2018. Retrieved 4 November 2018.
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  29. "Offizielle Deutsche Charts: Top 100 Single–Charts" [Official german charts: Top 100 single charts] (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. 13 April 2018. Archived from the original on 4 November 2018. Retrieved 4 November 2018.
  30. "Suchen nach 'Capital Bra'" [Search for 'Capital Bra'] (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Archived from the original on 18 June 2018. Retrieved 14 July 2018.
  31. Senger, Clark (16 June 2018). "Capital Bra mit Statement zur Trennung von Team Kuku" [Capital Bra with statement on the split from Team Kuku] (in German). Hiphop.de. Archived from the original on 9 October 2018. Retrieved 8 October 2018.
  32. "Kein King mehr für Capital Bra: Capital Bra hat sich von Team Kuku getrennt" [No king for Capital Bra: Capital Bra split from Team Kuku] (in German). MTV. 12 June 2018. Archived from the original on 3 October 2018. Retrieved 2 October 2018.
  33. Molke, David (6 July 2018). "Es ist offiziell: Capital Bra steht bei Bushido unter Vertrag" [It is official: Capital Bra signed to Bushido] (in German). Hiphop.de. Archived from the original on 3 October 2018. Retrieved 2 October 2018.
  34. Senger, Clark (16 March 2019). "Capital Bra spricht erstmals über die Gründe für die EGJ-Unterschrift" [Capital Bra talks for the first time about reasons for the EGJ signature] (in German). Retrieved 26 March 2019.
  35. "Fakt der Woche: "Melodien" von Capital Bra feat. Juju ist meistgestreamter Song eines Tages (1,9 Mio Streams) und einer Woche (9,7 Mio Streams)" [Fact of the week: "Melodien" by Capital Bra feat. Juju is the most streamed song in one day (1,9 million streams) and the most in one week (9,7 million streams).]. Offizielle Deutsche Charts. 18 May 2018. Archived from the original on 15 August 2018. Retrieved 4 November 2018 – via Facebook.
  36. "Bushido – Mythos Box-Inhalt: Rolex Gewinnspiel – Capital Bra EP" [Bushido – Mythos bosxet content: Rolex giveaway – Capital Bra EP] (in German). Rapindex. 12 August 2018. Archived from the original on 22 September 2018. Retrieved 22 September 2018.
  37. Molke, David (20 August 2018). "Noch dieses Jahr? Capital Bra kündigt neues Album an" [This year? Capital Bra announces new album] (in German). Hiphop.de. Archived from the original on 9 December 2018. Retrieved 31 October 2018.
  38. Lindemann, Jonas (30 October 2018). "Release an diesem Freitag: Neues Album "Allein" von Capital Bra angekündigt" [Release this friday: New album "Allein" from Capital Bra announced] (in German). Hiphop.de. Archived from the original on 31 October 2018. Retrieved 31 October 2018.
  39. Molke, David (10 November 2018). "Capital Bra & KitschKrieg dominieren weiter die Charts" [Capital Bra & KitschKrieg dominate again the charts] (in German). Hiphop.de. Archived from the original on 9 December 2018. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
  40. "Neues Album, neuer Youtube-Kanal & alles in Eigeninitiative: Capital Bra mit neuen Infos!" [New album, new YouTube channel & all on his own initiative: Capital Bra with new information!] (in German). Spit–TV. 6 November 2018. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
  41. "Apple Music: Capital Bras ‚Berlin lebt' ist das meistgestreamte Album 2018" [Apple Music: Capital Bras 'Berlin lebt' is the most-streamed album of 2018] (in German). Musikexpress. 4 December 2018. Retrieved 9 December 2018.
  42. Lindemann, Jonas (4 December 2018). "Spotify-Bestenlisten 2018: Rapper national und weltweit unangefochten an der Spitze" [Spotify Leaderboards 2018: Rapper nationally and globally undisputed at the top] (in German). Hiphop.de. Archived from the original on 10 December 2018. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
  43. Lindemann, Jonas (5 December 2018). "Olexesh sorgt für das erfolgreichste Musikvideo 2018 – Capital Bra fünfmal in den Top 10" [Olexesh is responsible for the most successful music video in 2018 – Capital Bra five times in the top ten] (in German). Hiphop.de. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
  44. "Capital Bra kündigt neues Album "CB6" an und veröffentlicht erstes Video" [Capital Bra announced new album „CB6“ and releases first video] (in German). Rap.de. 21 December 2018. Archived from the original on 22 December 2018. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
  45. "Capital Bra – CB6 (Ltd. Deluxe Box)". Amazon.com, Inc. Archived from the original on 20 December 2018. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  46. "Offizielle Deutsche Charts: Rekordansturm der Weihnachtssong" [Official German charts: Record rush of Christmas songs] (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. 28 December 2018. Archived from the original on 29 December 2018. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
  47. Spahr, Wolfgang (11 January 2019). "Universal Music Signs Capital Bra, Germany's Most Successful Act of the 21st Century". Billboard. Archived from the original on 19 January 2019. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
  48. Senger, Clark (22 January 2019). "Capital Bra verlässt EGJ & packt über Bushido aus" [Capital Bra leaves EGJ and talks about Bushido] (in German). Hiphop.de. Archived from the original on 23 January 2019. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  49. Rubach, Michael (25 January 2019). "Capital Bra – Prinzessa [Video]" (in German). Hiphop.de. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  50. Rubach, Michael (1 February 2019). "Charts: Doppelspitze für Deutschrap" [Charts: Twin tip for Rap] (in German). Hiphop.de. Archived from the original on 2 February 2019. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  51. Senger, Clark (19 March 2019). "Capital Bra will Kollaboalbum mit Samra veröffentlichen und covert "Cheri Cheri Lady"" [Capital Bra wants to release a collaborative album with Samra and covers "Cheri Cheri Lady"] (in German). Archived from the original on 23 March 2019. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
  52. "Capital Bra – Cherry Lady – Single". Retrieved 22 March 2019 – via iTunes Store.
  53. "Rap meets Schlager: Capital Bra hat Modern Talkings "Cherry Lady" gecovert" [Rap meets Schlager: Capital Bra covered Modern Talkings "Cherry Lady"] (in German). MTV. 25 March 2019. Retrieved 26 March 2019.
  54. "Wegen Leak: Capital Bra veröffentlicht "CB6" früher" [Because of a leak: Capital Bra releases "CB6" earlier] (in German). Rap.de. 9 April 2019. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
  55. "Rapper Capital Bra am meisten gestreamt in Deutschland" [Rapper Capital Bra the most streamed artist in Germany]. Hamburger Abendblatt (in German). 2 May 2019. Archived from the original on May 3, 2019. Retrieved 2 May 2019.
  56. "1,4 Milliarden Streams: Capital Bra landet neuen Allzeit-Rekord" [1.4 billion streams: Capital Bra achieves new alltime record] (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. May 3, 2019. Archived from the original on May 3, 2019.
  57. "Mit Messer bedroht: Drei Jugendliche überfallen Capital-Bra-Konzertbesucher". Schwäbische Zeitung (in German). May 2, 2019. Archived from the original on May 3, 2019. Retrieved May 4, 2019.
  58. Barz, Julius (8 May 2019). ""Berlin lebt 2": Capital Bra und Samra geben Albumtitel bekannt" (in German). Rap.de. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
  59. Schmidt, Robin (20 June 2019). ""Berlin Lebt 2" & Soloalbum: Samra mit neuen Releasedates" (in German). Hiphop.de. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
  60. "Rammstein zurück auf Platz eins der Offiziellen Deutschen Charts" [Rammstein back atop the official German charts] (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. June 28, 2019. Archived from the original on July 26, 2019. Retrieved July 26, 2019.
  61. ""Sweet But Psycho" war erfolgreichster song im ersten Halbjahr" ["Sweet But Psycho" was the biggest song in the first half year] (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. July 3, 2019. Archived from the original on July 26, 2019. Retrieved July 26, 2019.
  62. Büchler, David (20 January 2019). "Hiphop.de Awards 2018: Das sind die Gewinner" [Hiphop.de Awards 2018: These are the winners] (in German). Hiphop.de. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
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