Party of Progress
Culcha Candela frontman Mateo Jasik wants to run in the federal election
Mateo Jasik is moving from the stage to politics: The rapper from Culcha Candela wants to join the Bundestag for a new party – to strengthen democracy and social change.
“Today you can no longer be apolitical, even if you make feel-good pop music like we do,” Mateo Jasik, rapper of the music group Culcha Candela, said in an interview in 2021. Now the 45-year-old Berlin musician and producer is putting his words into action and entering politics. He wants to run for a seat in the Bundestag in 2025 for the young Progress Party (PDF).
The Party of Progress was founded in 2020 by two students at the WG table in Cologne Kalk. Under the motto “Ideas instead of ideologies,” the grassroots democratic party wants to pursue “politics that are close to the people, but not populist.” It has 563 members (as of November 29, 2024) throughout Germany, has a seat in the European Parliament since 2024 and a local mayor in Gartz (Oder). The party’s stated goals include the standardization of the education system, longer parental benefits (also for the self-employed), the decriminalization of abortion and a higher top tax rate for the super-rich.
Culcha Candela has been around since 2002
Musician Mateo Jasik finds himself in these demands. Jasik grew up in Poland during the Soviet Union and moved to West Berlin in the mid-1980s. The stark difference between the dreary gray of the Eastern Bloc and the unlimited possibilities of the West left a deep impression on him, he says. And gave him an understanding of the value of democracy and freedom.
“Today I see our democracy threatened again by the rise of populism and extremism,” says Jasik. He now wants to get actively involved and be an example for other people from the arts and culture to take on civic responsibility.
The band Culcha Candela was founded in 2002 and combines reggae, dancehall and hip hop. The line-up of the Berlin band is multi-ethnic, the song lyrics range from socially critical content to party numbers. With around three million records sold, Culcha Candela is one of the most successful groups in their genre in Germany.
Source: Stern
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
