Biografi
He grew up with his sister in a middle-class family. After completing primary school, Raab attended a Jesuit boarding school in Bad Godesberg, graduating high school in 1986, where he also received musical support. He then served in the military until 1987. Raab began his career by training as a butcher in his parents' business. After finishing his apprenticeship, he studied law at the universities of Cologne and Bielefeld. During this time, he also composed songs for various commercials. After initial success, he ended his studies after the fifth semester and established his own recording studio in 1990. Raab received numerous commissions from radio stations, advertising agencies, and television networks to produce melodies and jingles.
In 1993, when the music channel VIVA was founded, Raab applied to compose trailer music. As part of the application process, he participated in a casting and was selected as the presenter of the show "Vivasion." The program quickly became one of the station's most popular, making Raab known throughout Germany. The following year, for the 1994 World Cup, he produced his first typical Raab song, "Böörtie Böörtie Vogts," which became a summer hit. In 1995, he released a cover of Jürgen Drews' single "Ein Bett im Kornfeld" with Bürger Lars Dietrich and Jürgen Drews, which reached number 27 on the German charts. For the 25th anniversary of "Sendung mit der Maus," Raab transformed the well-known Mouse anthem into a hit with an original rap.
In 1998, Guildo Horn won the German preliminary round for the Eurovision Song Contest with Raab's song "Guildo hat euch lieb." Raab himself took fifth place in 2000 with "Wadde hadde dudeda." That same year, Brainpool TV GmbH acquired a 50% stake in Raab’s production company, Stefan Raab TV GmbH, and Raab obtained a 25% stake in Brainpool TV. In 1999, Raab launched his own TV show, "TV Total," on the private broadcaster Pro7, initially airing weekly. Due to its success, production increased to four episodes per week in 2001. From this platform, Raab became a pioneer of event television, successfully adapting his show's format to various TV concepts.
On March 22, 2001, Raab organized a boxing match against Karlsruhe boxing champion Regina Halmich, promoted on his show. Halmich won on points. Similar competitions followed. At the "Golden Camera" awards on February 4, 2004, Raab was honored as "TV Entertainer." In March 2005, at the 41st Adolf Grimme Prize ceremony, he was recognized for promoting musical talent through his event "Stefan sucht den super Grand Prix Star" (SSDSGPS). At the Echo Music Prize ceremony on April 1, 2005, Raab was named the most successful music producer of the year for his work with Max Mutzke, SSDSGPS, and the soundtrack for "(T)Raumschiff Surprise."
Following successful productions like the "Wok-WM" (since 2003) and the "Bundesvision Song Contest" (since 2005), the game show "Schlag den Raab" premiered on ProSieben in 2006. On September 29, 2007, it won the German Television Award for Best Entertainment Program for its fifth edition. Since early 2007, Raab has regularly hosted celebrities on the "TV Total PokerStar.de Night." On February 6, 2008, "Schlag den Raab" received the Golden Camera award. Additionally, Raab earned the Bambi media prize in the "Entertainment" category on November 27, 2008. In 2009, he received the "Herbert Award" for Best TV Sports Program for "TV Total Turmsprung." On June 18, 2015, Raab announced his decision to stop hosting shows after the year's end.
Privately, Raab lives a reserved life in Cologne. He has been in a long-term relationship with Nike, an editor at Brainpool, the production company behind "TV Total." Together, they have two children.
