This fate greatly piqued the otherwise happy jury.
Abdul “Abi” Faizan (20), the DSDS candidate from Koblenz, fled the Taliban with his parents from his home country of Afghanistan six years ago. While on the run, he lost sight of his mother, father and his three siblings – and never found them again. In Germany, Abi was brought up in a foster family.
Until recently, the young man did not know whether his parents and siblings were alive.
On Saturdays, the electronics intern sings in front of the jury of “Deutscheland such den Superstar” (8:15 p.m.) on RTL – and tells his moving story.
“We all had tears in our eyes,” revealed DSDS Chief Justice Florian Silberesen (40) Bild. “Abi’s fate touched us greatly.”
When the show was recorded in July 2021, Abis had high hopes that his family could see and contact him on TV later.
“At that moment, all we wanted was for Abi to find nothing but to rediscover her family,” says Florian Silberesen.
But it went really fast. Meanwhile, Abiy finds his parents, who are still living in the most difficult living conditions in Afghanistan.
How did this happen?
Abi to Bild: “My father asked a friend in Stuttgart to find me. He turned to the immigration office. Then he googled my name and found me via an online report. I bought my guitar before DSDS demonstrated in churches with and a newspaper reported it.
Contact was established between him and his parents through Abi’s class teacher. The first video call between him and his family took place after six years of separation.
ABI: “We couldn’t believe we found each other again! We all cried and laughed, it was totally emotional.”
Florian Silberesen is also ecstatic: “I can hardly even believe that Abi is in touch with her family again through music and reporting about it!”
Abi’s biggest wish now is to hug her parents again. He says: “They are still facing retaliation in Afghanistan. I hope you can come to Germany with me soon.”