An hour of '99 Red Balloons'?


VH1 Classic to air 1984 video to satisfy pledge request

Friday, March 24, 2006; Posted: 11:18 a.m. EST (16:18 GMT)

| What Is This? NEW YORK (AP) -- They're kidding, right?

VH1 Classic will present a full hour of the English and German music videos for the 1984 hit "99 Luftballons," aka "99 Red Balloons," by German rock group Nena.

The music video presentation, to air Sunday (2 p.m. EST), caps off the cable channel's "Pay to Play for Hurricane Katrina Relief," which raised over $200,000 for Mercy Corps, a humanitarian relief organization.

Viewers could request one video to be played on VH1 Classic for every $25 donation. For a $35,000 donation, they could select an hour's worth of music videos from the 1960s through the early 1990s.

However, one viewer chose something different for his allotted hour, requesting continuous playing of "99 Luftballons," said VH1 spokeswoman Maura Wozniak.

"99 Luftballons" is a Cold-War era protest song that tells the story of 99 red balloons floating into the air, triggering an apocalypse when the military sends planes to intercept them.

Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed

newpower99 said:

Btw, "Nena" isn't a group, it's the name of the singer. She appeared on stage as "Nena & Band".

>>Viewers could request one video to be played on VH1 Classic for every $25 donation. For a $35,000 donation, they could select an hour's worth of music videos from the 1960s through the early 1990s.
<<<

Something seems really wrong with that pricing stucture.

Imagine an hour of Koda Kumi

a saint..a saint who ever did this..

o lord..

people are strange....

A hour of a woman's hairy armpits.

Why that???? I wish they would show her then and now!!! She's so cooool as an aged rock star here!

I know it was the 80's, and yes Nina looks CRAZY in that video. The hairy armpits have been gone for years, though (THANK GOD,LOLOLOL!!!!!)

However, Nena, even though she kinda got that American exposure by accident, has been a solid fixture on the German music scene for over 20 years now...kinda like a smaller Teutonic version of MADONNA here...and collaborates with UK artists and still charts highly & consistently for this part of the continent...If VH-1 was really trying to be daring and interesting, looking back to the artists of old who made us smile, they would show the old stuff, plus her new stuff from recent years! THEY WOULD SHOW NENA NOW! Still skinny, still VERY pretty (even after becoming a wife and birthing 65,000 kids), fashionabley edgy, making ear-friendly pop-rock, and there's also a 20th anniversary remix of 99 Luft Ballons from a couple years ago that could prove charming for old skool VH-1/MTV fans...they should show THAT so maybe the kids who watched VH-1 back in the day could get a kick out of who she was, and is, in the scope of European pop I really dig Nena as an old broad, and,as quiet as its kept, I'm jealous of how well she's keeping that skin and body in shape! Oddly, just like Madonna, that bitch NEVAH has a tan...I think she's fighting against gettin' wrinkles but at least it seems to be working...she looks great (especially minus the hairy pits, LOL)!

Why that???? I wish they would show her then and now!!! She's so cooool as an aged rock star here!

I know it was the 80's, and yes Nina looks CRAZY in that video. The hairy armpits have been gone for years, though (THANK GOD,LOLOLOL!!!!!)

However, Nena, even though she kinda got that American exposure by accident, has been a solid fixture on the German music scene for over 20 years now...kinda like a smaller Teutonic version of MADONNA here...and collaborates with UK artists and still charts highly & consistently for this part of the continent...If VH-1 was really trying to be daring and interesting, looking back to the artists of old who made us smile, they would show the old stuff, plus her new stuff from recent years! THEY WOULD SHOW NENA NOW! Still skinny, still VERY pretty (even after becoming a wife and birthing 65,000 kids), fashionabley edgy, making ear-friendly pop-rock, and there's also a 20th anniversary remix of 99 Luft Ballons from a couple years ago that could prove charming for old skool VH-1/MTV fans...they should show THAT so maybe the kids who watched VH-1 back in the day could get a kick out of who she was, and is, in the scope of European pop I really dig Nena as an old broad, and,as quiet as its kept, I'm jealous of how well she's keeping that skin and body in shape! Oddly, just like Madonna, that bitch NEVAH has a tan...I think she's fighting against gettin' wrinkles but at least it seems to be working...she looks great (especially minus the hairy pits, LOL)!

dont see why folks think this is strange..whoever donated the money probably thought it was a good cause....if your going to throw that much money down for a charity then you have it to spare...they probably have a great sense of humor and wanted to do something fun with their charity.

plus its a tax right off...

I love this song....it's on my iPod. Unfortunately I don't have VH1 Classic anymore, so I can't watch it.

I saw Nena perform live on the slopes in Austria just last week.....she's fun. She's been through a lot, I am glad for her she's having her comeback right now!

'99 Luftballons' was my first single ever....