Christa Paffgen

Christa Paffgen, known as Nico, was a German musician, actress, and model. She began her career in 1953 at around 14 years old, and her work spanned 35 years until her death in 1988. Nico appeared in films such as Federico Fellini's La Dolce Vita (1960) and Andy Warhol's Chelsea Girls (1966). She was described by reviewer Richard Goldstein as "half goddess, half icicle," with a voice that "sounds something like a cello getting up in the morning."

Her music career took off when Warhol insisted she sing on three songs of the Velvet Underground's debut album, The Velvet Underground & Nico (1967). That same year, she released her solo album Chelsea Girl. Jim Morrison suggested she write her own material, and she composed on a harmonium, an unusual choice for rock. John Cale, also of the Velvet Underground, became her arranger and produced The Marble Index (1968), Desertshore (1970), and The End... (1974). Nico was a slim woman, 5'10" tall, with brown hair, blue eyes, and measurements of 36-25-36.

In the 1980s, she toured extensively in Europe, the United States, Australia, and Japan. After a concert in Berlin in June 1988, she went to Ibiza to rest, but she died there from a cerebral haemorrhage while cycling in extreme heat. She was 49 years old.