Kaffkiez rejects AfD criticism as award dispute escalates

The Rosenheim band Kaffkiez has rejected criticism from the city council’s AfD faction over its planned cultural promotion award, BR reported. AfD parliamentary group leader Andreas Kohlberger has since repeated his call for the musicians to stay out of politics.

The band is due to receive the City of Rosenheim’s cultural promotion award in October 2026. The AfD faction opposed the award, accusing Kaffkiez of taking an increasingly aggressive political stance and using its platform and reach for one-sided political campaigns.

Singer Johannes Eisner told Bayern 2’s Zündfunk that the band had considered whether to respond to the criticism. But the accusations were so unfounded that they could not leave them unanswered, he said.

Kaffkiez said it was not taking an aggressive political position but standing up as democrats against right-wing extremism. “We see discrimination, exclusion, hatred and incitement as a danger to this country,” Eisner said.

At the same time, the band encouraged its audience to seek dialogue. “Have discussions through to the end, have the courage to listen and perhaps also understand what motivates people to vote for such a party,” Eisner said. The band said this approach was about solidarity and a shared future, not aggression.

Kohlberger disagreed. Speaking to Bayern 2’s Zündfunk, he said musicians should generally not discuss politics on stage. “The nice boys should please make music. They do that very well, and they should stick to it,” he said. In his view, election recommendations from bands were clichéd and presumptuous. “Politicians should not talk about music on stage, and musicians should not talk about politics.”

In response to the AfD’s criticism, Kaffkiez played a free concert in Rosenheim’s pedestrian zone last Friday and collected donations for the city youth organisation, which also supports young musical talent. The band made the first donation, giving 2,500 euros, the same amount as the cultural promotion award. More than 12,000 euros were raised in total.

“We are still overwhelmed by how many people stood together with us,” said band member Johannes Gottwald. Police said around 1,000 people attended the concert. Eisner added that it had shown “in the best possible way what solidarity really means.”