Kat Johnson '24 | How to Discover German Music

Photo Credits: German Music Charts

One great resource for studying a language is music! As I study German, listening to music has helped me gain a stronger grasp on the language and culture. There are many simple ways to discover German and Austrian artists, if you are looking to improve your understanding of the language.

The Simple Google Search

One of the most straightforward ways of finding German songs is simply searching keywords on Google, such as “German songs,” “German artists” (or bands), “Austrian music,” and so forth. This is an easy way to find numerous options to listen to. The one downside to this method is that you will have to sort through the search results and decide what you want to listen to and what might interest you. Also with this method, many of the search results are traditional or classical music, unless you specifically search for “Modern German music.” 

Ask for Recommendations

Another way to discover German songs is to ask German speakers or German language learners for recommendations. If you have a German Professor or teacher, they are likely to know of many groups they enjoy listening to that they would gladly share with you. This can also be an amazing way to connect with others studying German by sharing and talking about music.

Check out the Charts for a German Speaking Country

Checking the German music charts or the charts of a German speaking country is an effortless way to enjoy popular music. Most music platforms, such as Spotify, allow you to view the top charts for each country. While many of the songs may be in English, as English music is popular in other countries, there are also some songs in German. From there, you can check out the artists listed and find more of their songs. 

Movie and Television

Personally, I have discovered some of my favorite German songs from watching movies or TV in German and listening to the songs and artists featured in them. Many modern shows and movies use popular songs, so they are a great resource for finding new music and improving language skills in a fun and interesting way.

This is not an exhaustive list of all the possible ways to discover German music, but I hope it has given you some ideas and encouragement! In addition, here are some of my own German artist recommendations. Feel free to comment your own recommendations as well!

Kat’s Favorite German Music:

• Bilderbuch (An Austrian rock band): Bilderbuch has such a unique sound and interesting music that is both exciting and fun.

• CRO (A German rapper): CRO has many great songs that are fun to listen to with friends and great for hype music. 

• Juju (A German pop artist/rapper): Juju has unique pop music that’s great if you love to learn the lyrics and sing along to songs. 

• KitschKrieg (A German production group): All the songs KitschKrieg works on are so cool and perfect, if you like rap music. I also really like their name.