With the panda mask as a trademark, CRO inspires its fans with legendary concerts and tours. In 2012 his debut album "Raop" was released, which catapulted him to the top of the German charts in his early twenties. Already at the beginning of his career, CRO's tours are fully booked before the first concert.
CRO's early artistic ambitions
As a child, CRO learned to play the piano and guitar . After graduating from school, he completed an apprenticeship as a media designer and worked as a cartoonist. At the age of 16, CRO began competing against other rappers under the alias Lyr1c on the "Reimliga Battle Arena", an online platform for audio rap battles.
CROs Way to the top
At the age of 19, the rapper produced his first mixtape "Meine Musik". The hip-hop musician Kaas likes the recordings. He introduces CRO to the founders of the independent label Chimperator Productions.
In October 2011, CRO performs as a pre-act for the Norwegian band Madcon. Since the first concert he hides his face behind a panda mask, which quickly becomes his trademark. Psaiko.Dino, who works as an intern at Chimperator Productions and becomes friends with the musician, supports CRO on the tour as a DJ and speaker.
From the mixtape "Easy" will be released in December 2011 the single of the same name on tape.tv. Jan Delay links the track on his Facebook page and ennobles CRO with the words "the future of German rap". The song, which CRO makes available as a free download, crashes the Chimperator server shortly after release.
In January 2012, CRO starts its first own concert tour "Pandas Gone Wild". In mid-February 2012, his song “Hi Kids” hit one million clicks on YouTube. In April there were already three million views. In the same year, CRO goes on tour again under the title "Hip Teens Wear Tight Jeans". He is supported by Rockstah and Ahzumjot. The tickets for the 19 CRO concerts are already sold out before the first show.
In July, CRO releases its debut album "Raop". The rapper chooses the title based on his style. He himself describes his music as a mix between pop and classic rap. During the production, the rapper hardly uses any samples, but plays almost all the melodies himself. CRO goes on tour again with the songs from his first album, in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
Number 1 for every album
Already his first Album "Raop" becomes a chart-topper. All subsequent albums by CRO also made it to number 1 in the German album charts:
- 2012: "Raop"
- 2014: "Melodie"
- 2015: "MTV-Unplugged: CRO"
- 2017: "tru."
- 2021: "Trip"
CRO becomes a pop star
After his debut album, CRO is a guest on shows like "Wetten, dass..?" and becomes an advertising figure with his mask. In 2014 he released his next LP "Melody". Producer Shuko, who also works for Dendemann and Franky Kubrick, contributes many beats to the tracks. The released single "Traum" immediately landed at number 1 in the Media Control single charts.
In 2015, CRO gave an MTV unplugged concert at the Scala cinema in Ludwigsburg. At just 25, he is the youngest artist to receive this honor. Among the guests are greats like Die Prinzen, Max Herre and Haftzettel.
CRO sells 200,000 copies of the third studio album "tru." This gives it platinum status. With the songs, the rapper turns away from the former pop and shows himself to be more willing to experiment. After concerts in numerous clubs in February and March 2018, CRO starts an indoor tour at the end of the same year, which is sold out within just 48 hours.
Produces his double album "Trip", released in 2021 CRO at his home in Bali. You can tell the jungle feeling from the laid-back tracks. The former mixture of rap and pop is no longer recognizable here. CRO now presents himself to his fans as a multifaceted artist.
