scheidet comes from the verb scheiden, meaning "to separate" or "to part". It's a formal and powerful word you'll rarely hear in casual conversation, but it's famous for its use in a specific, crucial phrase.
It's the key verb in the traditional German wedding vow, "bis dass der Tod euch scheidet" (till death do you part). Rammstein dramatically builds the song's chorus around this vow, asking the ultimate question of commitment, only to have the singer respond with a resounding "Nein!" (No!). This makes scheidet a pivotal word for understanding the song's rebellious and iconic twist.
Rammstein loves a good pun, and "Du Hast" has one of the best in rock music. The song starts with the repeated line "Du hast mich," which sounds almost exactly like the German for "You hate me" ("Du hasst mich"). It's a really aggressive way to start a song! But then the lyrics reveal the full line is actually "Du hast mich gefragt" (You have asked me), which completely changes the meaning. It's not a song about hate, but about being asked a very important question.
What's the question? It's literally a wedding vow! The song asks, "Willst du bis der Tod euch scheidet / Treu ihr sein für alle Tage?" (Do you want to be faithful to her for all days, until death separates you?). Instead of the expected "Ja" (Yes), the answer is a very firm "Nein" (No). The whole song builds up to this dramatic rejection right at the altar. It's a simple and powerful story of saying no to marriage.
Six men from East Germany who have never swapped a member: Rammstein came together in Berlin in 1994 with Till Lindemann singing, Richard Kruspe and Paul Landers on guitars, Oliver Riedel on bass, Christoph Schneider on drums and Christian "Flake" Lorenz on keyboards. Landers, Lorenz and Schneider came out of the East Berlin punk band Feeling B. Their debut Herzeleid (1995) pushed the German music press into coining a genre name for it, Neue Deutsche Härte.
They sing in German, roll every R, and set fire to a good deal of the stage. Sehnsucht (1997) carried "Du hast" and "Engel" abroad and every album since has gone to number one in Germany, among them Mutter, Reise, Reise and Zeit (2022), while "Sonne", "Ich will", "Amerika" and the 2019 chart topper "Deutschland" fill out the setlist. Germany's youth media board put Liebe ist für alle da on its restricted index in 2009 over the track "Ich tu dir weh"; a Cologne court overturned that in 2010. Their stadium tour ended in Gelsenkirchen in July 2024 after 135 shows, and they have not been back on the road since.