David Hasselhoff - Looking for Freedom (1989)

David Hasselhoff's family is of German origin, his ancestors immigrated from the Bremen area to Baltimore around the 1860s. Hasselhoff also has Irish and English roots. As soon as his status as an actor was solidified, he attempted to move into the music industry. He made his debut with the 1985 album Night Rocker while continuing his film career. After two moderately successful albums, in 1989, after the fall of the Berlin Wall, he released his album Looking for Freedom. The song was almost played as an anthem in Germany and the album went gold and triple platinum. He managed to stay at the top of the charts for three months.

"Looking for Freedom" is a song written by German music producer Jack White, originally released in 1978 by German singer Marc Seaberg and featured on his 1979 album California Gold. It was covered in German later that year under the name "Auf der Straße nach Süden" by Tony Marshall. Both versions became hits in Germany.

Ten years later, American actor and singer David Hasselhoff covered the song as the lead single from his third studio album of the same name (1989). It became Hasselhoff's biggest international hit, reaching number one in Germany (for eight weeks), in Switzerland (for four weeks) and Austria (for one week). It also reached number four on the European Hot 100 Singles; the top-twenty in France and Belgium; and the top-forty in the Netherlands. "Looking for Freedom" was eventually certified Platinum in Germany, and became the best-performing single of 1989 in Germany and Switzerland. White returned to produce both cover versions.