Detlef Soost, also using the name D!, most often called Detlef D! Soost, is a German dancer, choreographer, and TV presenter.
Life
Soost was born in East Berlin and grew up in an orphanage. His mother, who died very early, was a German, and his father came to the GDR from Ghana. According to the biography on his homepage, Soost became streetdance champion of East Berlin when he was 15 years old, and champion of the GDR when he was 16, but some critics point out that, based on his date of birth given in the same biography, this appears very unrealistic: streetdance was not accepted in the GDR and no "official" battles could be held in which Soost could have won a title. However, there is no doubt that Soost in this time was one of the most important people in Berlin's streetdance scene. Soost has two children from an earlier relationship; daughter Chani, who was born in April 2006, and son Carlos, born in July 2007. Since 2009, Soost has been married to British singer Kate Hall.
Career
In 2005, Soost published his autobiographyNeger – Heimkind – Pionier. In this book, among other things, he also writes about his ethnic background and the problems caused by it. Soost describes himself as "Schoki", a childish word for chocolate. In the years after the German reunification, he started a career as a professional choreographer and dance teacher. Later, he founded a network of dancing schools under the brand D!s Dance Club. He owns a "Coaching and Casting Center" in Berlin-Mitte. He also produces dance music and develops choreographies for the "D!s Dance Clubs" and other dancers under the brand D!Nation.
TV
Soost has been the choreographer and head of jury in every season of the German version of Popstars, broadcast by ProSieben. He also presents a similar program called MusicStar on Swiss SF DRS. In 2005, he presented Super Illu TV on MDR. In 2005/06, Soost also worked for ProSieben, presenting Lebe Dein Leben! – Live-Coaching mit Detlef D! Soost, before the show got canceled due to TV ratings. On the German music television channelVIVA, Soost hosted, presented and led all four seasons of the casting show DanceStar. Soost also took part in the ProSieben reality showDie Alm – Promischweiß und Edelweiß in 2004, a show in which several lesser known German celebrities had to live and work on an "alm" in the Alps, and the audience could vote for a winner. After the regular time of the show, Soost was close to winning, but had to leave the show when it was extended, because of other projects. In 2007, he won the German version of the Gameshow Marathon on ProSieben.
