David Bowie

"I'm just an individual who doesn't feel that I need to have somebody qualify my work in any particular way. I'm working for me" ("David Bowie: The Iconic Singer's Most Profound Quotes"). Rock star David Bowie was known as a "cultural chameleon" because of the many styles he was daring enough to have at his disposal. Born on January 8, 1947 in Brixton, London, he died at the age of 69 in a battle with cancer on January 10, 2016. However, David Bowie died a hero to many people. He was married to the beautiful Somali model Iman Mohamed Abdulmajid. As a child, David Bowie lacked a close relationship with his parents. Bowie stated about his father, "I could never, ever talk to my father. I really loved him, but we couldn't talk about anything together. There was this really British thing that being even remotely emotional was absolutely verboten" ("David Bowie"). David Bowie's younger years are an important foundation to the rest of his life. His poor relationship between him and his parents fueled his passion for music, which caused him to seek his talent. Once he found it, he was determined to become a rock star. Little did he know, he would become a hero to people all over the world. A hero must care for others besides himself and be willing to do good for other people. David Bowie is a hero not because he was famous or wealthy, but because used his unique talent to promote individuality and his fame to contribute to culture and charity.

Throughout his legendary music career, his exuberant sense of fashion, and his witty words, David Bowie always promoted individuality and encouraged his audience to stay true to themselves. The rock star is known for his many eccentric, flamboyant personae, and here he described what compels him to create them. "I know now for a fact that so much of my ambition and drive came from wanting to escape from myself and from feelings of inadequacy and vulnerability and not feeling I was loved by anybody, particularly. I would drive those feelings out by throwing myself not only into work, but eventually into characters" ("David Bowie"). Bowie explained that he would get rid of his longing to escape himself by transforming himself into characters, and he elaborated that much of his determination came from these feelings. These characters would not only help him feel more like himself, but they inspired others to be themselves as well, no matter how weird they might seem. David Bowie reflected on the time he told an interviewer about his sexuality. "He also discussed his bisexuality in an interview with the British music magazine Melody Maker. The resulting controversy lingered on for years. Later Bowie told Kurt Loder in Rolling Stone: "The biggest mistake I ever made ... was telling that ... writer that I was bisexual. Christ, I was so young then. I was experimenting" ("David Bowie"). Bowie stated that he regrets saying in an older interview that he was bisexual since he was quite young at the time and it sparked controversy that followed him long after. However, his openness regarding the touchy subject of sexuality surprised many people and inspired those going through the same thing to be just as open about the subject as well. David Bowie is inspiring because he appealed to outcasts and oddballs everywhere, encouraging them to stay true to themselves no matter how weird they might seem to others.

Not only did David Bowie contribute to culture, but he also actively sought out opportunities to give to charity as well. David Bowie revealed that his career meant more to him than just simply expressing himself. "I suppose for me as an artist it wasn't always just about expressing my work; I really wanted, more than anything else, to contribute in some way to the culture I was living in" ("David Bowie: The Iconic Singer's Most Profound Quotes"). Bowie longed to contribute to culture, and he definitely did in an unforgettable way. His work is considered legendary; in fact, his influences are still present in today's music and culture. Aside from his music career, David Bowie would spend a lot of time contributing to charities for children in poverty, children with illnesses like AIDS, illness research, and much more. "In late 1990, the dynamic pair participated in a fundraising event, 7th on Sale, for the enhanced medical research in treating and curing AIDS. The pair would go on to serve as recurring donors and participants in foundations that conducted deep, thorough studies of the then-unknown sexual catastrophe throughout the remainder of the 90's" (Jeff Varner). Bowie and his wife Iman often participated in charity events together. The generous, caring couple would actively seek opportunities to put their fortune towards people in need. David Bowie is heroic because he cared about others and always tried to find ways that he could use his career and talent to benefit others.

David Bowie is a hero because he promoted individuality and contributed to culture and charity. His lively personae gave outcasts confidence and his contributions to charity gave those in need the support they needed. David Bowie is an inspiration because he pushed many boundaries that others would never dare cross to promote individuality over society's ideals. He contributed his time, effort, and money to charity, using his fame not only for his own fortune but for others' benefit as well. "I don't know where I'm going from here but I promise it won't be boring" ("David Bowie: The Iconic Singer's Most Profound Quotes").

Works Cited

Blair, Olivia. "David Bowie: The Iconic Singer's Most Profound Quotes." The Independent.

Independent Digital News and Media, 11 Jan. 2016. Web. 04 Feb. 2016.

"David Bowie." DISCovering Biography. Detroit: Gale, 2003. Student Resources in Context.

Web. 4 Feb. 2016.

"David Bowie." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Vol. 18. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Student

Resources in Context. Web. 4 Feb. 2016.

"David Bowie." Newsmakers. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Student Resources in Context. Web. 4 Feb.

2016.

"David Bowie." St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture. Detroit: Gale, 2013. Student

Resources in Context. Web. 4 Feb. 2016.

Varner, Jeff. "David Bowie's & Iman's Philanthropic Activities." The Borgen Project RSS2. Clint

Borgen, 21 July 2015. Web. 04 Feb. 2016.