"Layla" - yes or no? This question also poses challenges for Oktoberfest hosts. The title is not on the playlist. But if the guests start singing the song themselves in the marquee, the conductor has come up with something.
Should the song "Layla", which has been the subject of heated debate since this summer, be played at the Oktoberfest or not? On the one hand, the restaurateurs had agreed that the song should not be played in the tents. That is the prevailing opinion and a recommendation, said host spokesman Peter Inselkammer. On the other hand: what if the guests in the tent - and there are thousands of them - suddenly start singing it themselves? "We won't be able to prevent that," says Inselkammer, who runs the crossbowmen's tent at the folk festival. But one was prepared for it: "Our Kapellmeister has thought about something. He is preparing another text that is not sexist." That is better "than if we ignore it".
The lyrics of the song by DJ Robin
The Oktoberfest management didn't want to do that. "We are neither culture nor language police," said Wiesn boss Clemens Baumgärtner from the CSU recently, who personally does not like the song. Inselkammer agrees that the "Layla" song really has "stupid lyrics". But: "The Layla topic is too high for me. The people who sing the song are not misogynists."
Last but not least, songs have always been played at the Wiesn that are a bit rough - but so far have not caused any offense: "Zicke Zacke, Cheers, you sacks" doesn't sound very nice. The song "Joana", on the other hand, was partly brought to Ballermann level by the audience with interjections like "du geile Sau". "Sometimes the people in the beer tent want to go a bit overboard," says Inselkammer. "That's part of it for young people too: testing their limits."
(This article was first published on Wednesday, September 14, 2022.)
