Daniel Küblböck

Biography

Daniel Dominik Kaiser-Küblböck (born Küblböck; 27 August 1985 – 9 September 2018) was a German singer, best known for placing third in the television talent show Deutschland sucht den Superstar in 2003. In the years that followed, he remained present in the media through work as a jazz singer and entrepreneur, as an actor and narrator in films and audio books, and by taking part in reality shows.
In September 2018, Küblböck went missing at sea off Canada while travelling on a cruise ship, and was declared dead on 10 March 2021. Shortly before the disappearance, Küblböck was reported to have privately expressed a desire to assume a female identity with the name Lana Kaiser.

Career

Küblböck rose to stardom in late 2002 when he participated in the first season of German talent show Deutschland sucht den Superstar (DSDS). He gained the most viewer votes in three of the nine rounds of the competition and received the second-most votes in a further three rounds. Together with other participants, Daniel recorded the album United which included the number 1 single "We Have a Dream". He finished the season in third place overall.
After DSDS, Küblböck signed a contract with BMG. In March 2003, he released his debut solo single, "You Drive Me Crazy×You Drive Me Crazy31 March 2003 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracks1You Drive Me Crazy (radio version)3:002You Drive Me Crazy (extended version)3:533You Drive Me Crazy (instrumental version)2:594Superman (Eggenfelden mix)3:09", which topped the German sales chart. The follow-up single, "Heartbeat×Heartbeat19 May 2003 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracks1Heartbeat (radio version)3:222Heartbeat (Kornfeld mix)3:123You Drive Me Crazy (Hi Positive Energy mix)2:534Heartbeat (instrumental version)3:22", and Daniel's debut album Positive Energie×Positive Energie16 June 2003 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 13 tracks1Heartbeat3:262You Drive Me Crazy3:553Love Is in the Air3:424I Don’t Wanna Live Another Life3:275Love of My Life3:436Little Satellite4:087Heartbreaker4:168Pretty Woman2:549Rock ’n’ Roll Hero3:4910Life Is Too Short3:3511Call Me Mr. Lover4:0512Superman3:1313Everytime You Go Away3:54 both reached no. 2 in Germany and achieved major success in Austria and Switzerland. In September 2003, he launched a perfume line for children in three fragrances under his name. He also released an autobiography Ich lebe meine Töne. Küblböck invested the proceeds from his album Positive Energie amounting to around one million euros in a solar plant in Lower Bavaria, which would bring him high monthly profits.
In early 2004, he participated in Ich bin ein Star – Holt mich hier raus!, the German version of I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!, where he came third. He then released a cover of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight×The Lion Sleeps Tonight2004 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracks1The Lion Sleeps Tonight (radio jungle edit)3:042Oops - We Are in the Jungle3:303Skating in the Wind3:344The Lion Sleeps Tonight (alternative jungle edit)3:10" which reached the top 10 in Germany and the top 40 on the Austrian and Swiss charts. His next single, the ballad "Teenage Tears×Teenage Tears2004 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracks1Teenage Tears (radio version)3:352Teenage Tears (original version)3:553Teenage Tears (instrumental version)3:564Teenage Tears (solo version)3:51", sold 10,000 copies. In August, Küblböck's biographical musical film Daniel – Der Zauberer was released, in which he played a fictionalized version of himself. The film was critically panned and bombed at the box office. At the end of 2004, he released the charity single "Don't Close Your Eyes" with three others DSDS participants under the moniker 4 United, in support of Ärzte ohne Grenzen (Doctors Without Borders). It was a moderate chart success.

In 2005, Küblböck launched his own marketing company Positive Energie. In November 2005, he released his second album, Liebe Nation×Liebe Nation11 November 2005 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 14 tracks1Liebe Nation4:072König von Deutschland3:063Ich gehöre nicht jedem5:034Supernova2:375Aliens5:286Bereit3:477Ich hasse mich3:328Der Traum3:009Neue Menschen2:0410Roboter3:4311Warum?3:3112Rebell3:3113Einsamkeit3:2214Ich werde dich finden4:11, recorded in German. It only reached no. 54 in Germany, and the accompanying single "König von Deutschland" was a moderate chart success. The next single, country-inspired "Born in Bavaria×Born in Bavaria1 June 2007 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1Born in Bavaria (Partymix)2Born in Bavaria (Original Version)", was his last ever to chart. Küblböck's subsequent albums were released independently. 2009 saw the release of the jazz album Jazz Meets Blues... Wenn zwei sich verlieben and his first Christmas CD Leise rieselt der Schnee. The following year, he released Schrebergarten and a two-disc compilation Best of 2003–2010. None of these albums managed to enter any sales charts.
In 2011, he started hosting his own talk show Daniels Bistro. In 2012, he released the album Diez años Kúblbóck – Ich versteh’ nur Spanisch which included some material recorded in Spanish and influenced by Latin pop. As Daniel Kaiser he submitted the song "Be a Man" to the German national pre-selection for the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest, but it was rejected by the jury. In spring 2015, he took part in the eighth season of the German dance show Let's Dance, where he finished sixth, together with his dancing partner Otlile Mabuse. In early 2016, he released his final album, Jesus Is My Lover.

Family

Küblböck's parents were Günther, a German, and Bianca, a woman of Italian descent. He had four brothers: Andreas, Michael, Günther and Dennis, and one sister, Jasmin.
While living in Mallorca, he met and befriended German millionaire Kerstin Elisabeth Kaiser who would later officially adopt him. Daniel subsequently adopted the double-barrelled surname Kaiser-Küblböck.

Sexual orientation and gender identity

In 2010, Küblböck came out as gay, after previously describing himself as bisexual.
After his disappearance, it was reported that Küblböck had privately discussed wanting to live out a female identity under the name "Lana Kaiser". Another passenger on the ship said in September 2018 that Küblböck had privately described a plan to have gender reassignment surgery to become a woman and had said that he had begun hormone therapy. Shortly before the disappearance, Küblböck created an Instagram account with the name "Rosa Luxemburg", on which he described himself as "transsexual".
In 2020, artist Philipp Gufler created a 13-minute short film and a magazine about Lana Kaiser. The film was shown, among others, at the 67th Short Film Festival in Oberhausen and in the group exhibition Sweat in the Haus der Kunst, Munich.

Legal trouble

On 24 February 2004, Küblböck was injured when he collided with a truck while driving a car without a licence near Pfarrkirchen. He was fined €25,000 and sentenced to eight hours of community service.

2018 disappearance

Küblböck was a private passenger on the cruise ship AIDAluna that left Hamburg on 29 August 2018, bound for New York City. At around 5 a.m. (local time) on 9 September, he jumped overboard. The vessel was in open waters about 185 km north of St. John's in the Labrador Sea. The water temperature was about 10.5 °C (50.9 °F).
The Canadian Coast Guard launched a search operation, assisted by the cruise ships AIDAluna and MS Zuiderdam. On 10 September, the search was abandoned, because the maximum survival time in cold water was exceeded. Under German law, a person missing at sea can be declared dead after six months have elapsed and a motion is filed by an eligible party. In August 2020, an application was submitted to declare Küblböck dead or to present evidence by 30 September 2020 that he is alive. On 10 March 2021, the Amtsgericht (district court) Passau declared Küblböck dead, setting his death date as 9 September 2018, 8:55 a.m. local time.
In the weeks leading up to the disappearance, Küblböck's friends noticed changes in his personality and signs of psychological problems, unsuccessfully trying to dissuade him from going on the cruise. Other passengers on the ship also reported Daniel's erratic behaviour, mood swings, and psychological problems.

Christmas albums

2009: Leise rieselt der Schnee
2010: Küblböckische Weihnacht – 24 Dates
2011: Küblböckische Weihnacht – Ruhe vor dem Sturm

Live albums

2008: Zero to Sexy – Live
2011: Schrebergarten – Live
2012: El tiempo – Live
2013: Diez años Kúblbóck – Ich versteh' nur Spanisch – Live
2014: Die Küblböck Live Show

DVDs

2004: Live on PE Tour 2003
2004: My Life Is Magic
2007: Jazz Night
2008: Back to the Roots
2009: Jazz Meets Blues... Wenn zwei sich verlieben
2011: Schrebergarten Berlin
2013: Diez años Kúblbóck – Ich versteh' nur Spanisch – Live in Berlin

TV shows

2002–03: Deutschland sucht den Superstar
2004: Ich bin ein Star – Holt mich hier raus!
2005: Big Brother
2011–14: Daniels Bistro
2015: Let's Dance