Nico, real name is Krista Paffgen. The future singer was born on October 16, 1938 in Cologne (Germany).
Nico's childhood
Two years later, the family moved to a suburb of Berlin. Her father was a military man and during the fighting he received a serious head injury, as a result of which he died in the occupation. After the war ended, the girl and her mother moved to the center of Berlin. There, Niko began working as a seamstress.
She was a very difficult teenager, and at the age of 13 she decided to leave school. The mother helped her daughter to work in a modeling agency. And as a model, Krista began to build a career, first in Berlin, and then moved to Paris.
There is a version that she was a victim of rape by an American soldier, and that one of the compositions written later refers to this episode.
Alias Nico
The girl did not come up with the stage name for herself. That name was called by one photographer who worked closely with her. The model liked this option and later in her career she successfully used it.
In Search of Yourself
In the 1950s, Nico had every chance to become a world-famous model. She often appeared on the covers of fashion magazines Vogue, Camera, Tempo, etc. When the famous and prestigious fashion house Chanel offered her to sign a long-term contract, the girl decided to go to America in search of something better.
There she learned English, French, Italian and Spanish, which were useful to her in life. Later, she herself said that life sent her many opportunities and chances, but for some reason she ran away from them.
This happened with a modeling career in Paris, the same thing happened with the famous film director Federico Fellini. He cast Niko in his film "Sweet Life" in a small role and was ready to work with her in the future. However, due to lack of assembly and constant lateness for filming, she was abandoned.
In New York, the girl tried herself as an actress. She took acting lessons from American producer and actor Lee Strasberg. In 1963, she received the leading female role in the film "Striptease" and sang the main composition for it.
Son of Nico
In 1962, Christa had a son, Christian Aaron Paffgen, who, according to his mother, was conceived by the popular and charming actor Alain Delon. Delon himself did not recognize his relationship and did not communicate with him. Later it turned out that the mother did not care about the child either. She took care of herself, went to concerts, meetings, spent time with her lovers.
The boy was transferred to the upbringing of Delon's parents, who loved and cared for him, they also gave him their last name - Boulogne. Nico developed a drug addiction, which, unfortunately, "captured" Aaron in the future. Although the child rarely saw his mother, he still idolized and adored her.
As an adult, he said that drugs allow him to be closer to his mother, they help him penetrate into his mother's world and be there with her. Aaron spent many years of his life in hospitals and clinics and always spoke negatively about his father.
Nico's Musical Wanderings
Niko met Brian Jones, and together they recorded the song I'm Not Sayin', which quickly took pride of place in the charts. Then the singer had an affair with Bob Dylan, but in the end she broke up with him, because the role of another lover did not suit her. Then she came under the wing of the famous and controversial pop idol Andy Warhol. They worked together on original films such as Chelsea Girl and Imitation of Christ.
Niko for Andy became a real muse, and he included her in his musical group The Velvet Underground. Some members were against this turn, but since Warhol was the producer and manager of the group, they put up with the new member.
Andy Warhol had his own show, where the guys also performed. There, the singer began to perform the main solo parts. The musical group with Krista in the composition recorded a joint album, which became a cult and progressive. Although many critics and colleagues spoke about this experiment, not very flattering reviews. In 1967, the girl left this composition and took up a personal career.
Solo career Nico
The singer began to develop rapidly and a year later she was able to release her debut solo album Chelsea Girl. She wrote the lyrics herself, often writing poetry for her numerous lovers, including Iggy Pop, Brian Johnson, Jim Morrison and Jackson Browne. In the disc, the singer combined elements such as folk and baroque pop.
She has been called the muse of the rock underground. She was admired, wrote poetry, composed music, showered with gifts and attention. Another album, The End, was recorded, but it was not very popular. From time to time, she performed songs in duets with other singers, and some were even popular.
Her character was the reason that the most needed and talented people left her. Addiction to heroin began to alienate her from the outside world. Musicians stopped working with her, she was invited to cultural meetings even less. Nico became short-tempered, selfish, infantile and uninteresting.
End of an era
For 20 years, Niko used heroin and other drugs without even trying to break free from addiction. As a result, the body and brain were exhausted. One day while cycling in Spain, she fell and hit her head. She died in the hospital from a cerebral hemorrhage.
