Richard Kruspe (; born Sven Kruspe; Kruspe has a younger sister and an older brother. His parents divorced when he was young, and his mother remarried. The family moved from the village of Weisen to Schwerin when Kruspe was young.
In a 2014 interview with Metal Hammer, Kruspe commented on life in East Germany, stating: "The thing about East Germany is that it was great to grow up there until you were 12. You were presented with the illusion of a very healthy society, which worked unless you asked questions – and you don't ask questions until you're 12."
At age 16, Kruspe and some friends visited Czechoslovakia, where he bought a guitar, originally planning to sell it. Kruspe later studied jazz guitar at the conservatorium in Schwerin for four years. He was then hit on the head by police and arrested. Once out of jail, he decided to leave East Germany. The band recorded material in 1989 that were later released on the album Lyrik in 2011. Following the break-up of Das Elegante Chaos in 1989, Kruspe formed Orgasm Death Gimmick in 1991. The band released three demo tapes before disbanding in 1993. The band released their debut album, Saddle Up, in 1992. Upon returning to Germany, he decided to pursue a new style of music that combined machine-like sounds with heavy guitars. That same year, the band was joined by guitarist Landers and keyboardist Christian Lorenz, and changed their name to Rammstein. He married South African actress Caron Bernstein on 29 October 1999. The ceremony was Jewish, and Kruspe composed the music for it. Kruspe moved from Berlin to New York in 2001 to live closer to Bernstein and work on his side-project Emigrate. They separated in 2004, and he reverted to his original last name. Kruspe moved back to Berlin in 2011.
Equipment
Kruspe has been an endorser of ESP Guitars since 1996. He bought his first ESP guitar, a sunburst 901 model, in 1990. Kruspe primarily used 901 models and Kirk Hammett signature model guitars for recording and touring until ESP produced his signature model guitars the ESP RZK-I in the mid-2000s and the RZK-II in the early 2010s. In 2023, after the European Union decided on a non-literal translation for "kill switch", the special spring push knob on the guitar, he received his custom J+Q Rgo RZK-III signature guitar from ESP that was designed for him in 1993. He also uses other ESP guitars, including Eclipse models and a Ron Wood signature model, in the studio. Kruspe was previously endorsed by EMG and was a long-time user of EMG 81 pickups before switching to Fishman in 2018 and joining their Fluence artist roster in 2023. He also has a signature Fluence pickup set. Kruspe mainly uses Mesa/Boogie amplifiers and cabinets, notably the Mark II C+ and Dual Rectifiers amps and 4×12 cabinets, in addition to Friedman and Soldano amps.