The man who became an icon has died. As the icon he became lives on in the hearts of his fans, one fan in particular, B.K.Mullen writes a letter. —
Dear David
Today I woke up and, like I always do, I checked Facebook. As I scrolled, I saw a few pictures of you with no words associated to it. Just pictures. I didn’t pay it much mind though, you’ve just had an album come out and besides you are an amazing individual. One of those fixtures in the world, a force of nature. Fire burns, wind blows, earth grows, water flows and David Bowie.
But today is different. Today we mourn the loss and celebrate the life. You moved us in a way that few have been able to do. Not just in music, but in your lifestyle. Always pushing boundaries in one way or another, while being a “regular bloke” at the same time. You showed the world how amazing a simple person can be, and how simple a rockstar truly is. And yet in all your simplicity there was a level of complexity that some of the world had trouble coping with.
When I was 9 years old, I heard the song “Golden Years” for the first time while watching the movie “A Knights Tale”. A week or so later I asked my older brother if he knew the artist and he looked at me partially shocked, partially excited.
“Have you ever heard of David Bowie?”
“No.”
And without a word he went to the computer and pulled up “Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders from Mars”. From that point on I was transfixed on the magic that existed in that album, which my brother than bought me for Christmas. I listened to it constantly and was moved by every second. At that time I didn’t understand what half the lyrics meant, but it didn’t really matter. I was moved by the music as a whole and it changed my whole perception of what magic really is.
From album to album I kept finding you, and then as time went on I found your influence in some of my favorite music of my teens and now into my twenties.
You re-invented one generation and inspired the following two. Needless to say you will always inspire, always influence, always make people fall in love, always help people identify, grow up and stay young.
You, “The Thin White Duke” have moved us all simply by expressing yourself and exuding your love. You are more than just a few hundred songs collected on a few dozen albums. You are more than soundbytes and inspirational posters. Through our passion you will always exist. From the next big musical artist, to the simple people relying on their headphones for sanity, love and inspiration.
Deep inside, there is a Ziggy Stardust in all of us. We all have an invisible lighting bolt painted on our face.
Thank you David. Thank you.