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Abigail Hopchak

Dr. Gina Terry

Humanities 100

27 March 2019

Bowie’s Domino Effect

Society today takes many things for granted: running water, electricity, and similar

commodities. One of the items that is enjoyed without much thought is music. It can be found

everywhere; in the background of stores, the radio, movies, weddings. Plato once said “Music is

moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and charm

and gaiety to life and to everything.” (“Plato Quotes”) Modern music has come to its place

through the efforts of many hard-working musicians. These artists’ goal was to gain acceptance;

to show the world that it is okay to be different. Musicians today owe much of their acceptance

and success to David Bowie.

David Bowie was born in South London on January 8th, 1947. He was involved with

smaller bands that released a limited number of popular singles, but his rise to fame came in

1969. He signed on with Mercury Records, who had signed other significant artists such as Bon

Jovi, Elton John, and Black Sabbath. That summer, Space Oddity was released. Space Oddity

brought Bowie into the limelight, and he released his second album the following year,

solidifying the public’s attention (“David Bowie”).

Bowie’s methods were unconventional; he sought to keep the public guessing. This

impacted how he would go on to influence music for decades to come. Bowie did not write

solely for one genre, but experimented for several. This brought attention to otherwise minor

genres such as glam rock, which was seen as wacky or frothy pop songs. He released albums in
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several genres: glam rock, industrial rock, hard rock, electronic, pop, hip-hop, indie, and folk.

While Bowie was not writing anything new necessarily, what he accomplished was to bring

positive attention and curiosity to these genres to mainstream audiences (Lynch, Joe).

His music was not new to the world. Bowie, however, was unlike any other. He certainly

paved the way for future musicians with his music, but his style and lifestyle set him apart and

changed what it meant to be a musician (Feeney, Nolan). The world was far less excepting of

those within the LGBTQ community prior to the 80s. Bowie came out as bisexual in 1976 and

continued on as a trend-changing musician. This inspired and encouraged generations of queer

musicians and helped to pave their way in an otherwise unaccepting world. Bowie masterfully

used his sexuality and androgyny to surprise his audiences and break the rules, creating a legacy

of boldness which empowered fans.

One thing that was most strikingly ‘Bowie’ was his theatricality. From album to album,

Bowie changed his persona and adopted an alter ego, assigning roles/ characters to albums

(Feeney, Nolan). He defied stereotypes by his ever-changing style, which never failed to be

accepted and adored by fans. His fans never saw the same thing twice with tours. He was a

shapeshifter, which inspired musicians to be bold with experimentation. Artists were no longer

pinned down by any particular genre; Bowie taught the world that fluidity and change were not

negative traits for a musician to possess, but could make them more successful.

The result of Bowie’s work is the freedom for musicians to experiment. He eliminated

the fear of boundaries, provided musicians in the minority the confidence to be bold, to step out,

and introduced little-known and even less understood genres in an engaging, captivating way. He

brought attention to these smaller, less popular types of music. Because of this, artists and

audiences began to give them attention, growing and establishing them into the well-known
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genres known today. Several of the 2000s top musicians have stated that they were inspired by

Bowie. These are groundbreaking artists whose music is known by many, whose music has been

on Top 50 charts, such as Patrick Stump of Fall Out Boy, The Killers, The Arctic Monkeys,

Calvin Harris, Lady Gaga, and Lorde (Devora, Abbey). These artists are beloved by audiences of

all ages, many of whom may grow up to be musicians because they were impacted by the work

of the bands they listened to growing up.

Bowie is remembered fondly for opening the doors for musicians. Many of today’s top

musicians and fashionistas are inspired by him. Plato’s words can be seen reflected in his life and

legacy; his creativity was endless as seen by his style, his mind constantly creating new music.

Bowie started a domino effect. Musicians today can boldly perform and express themselves, in

turn fueling their audiences with boldness and passion to break out and change the world for

future generations.
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Works Cited

“David Bowie.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 26 Jan. 2019,

www.biography.com/people/david-bowie-9222045.

Devora, Abby. “11 Artists Who Were Definitely Influenced By The Iconic David Bowie.” MTV News,

23 Sept. 2014, www.mtv.com/news/1938419/david-bowie-artists-influenced/.

Feeney, Nolan. “David Bowie: 4 Ways He Influenced Musicians Today.” Time, Time, 11 Jan. 2016,

time.com/4175766/david-bowie-influence-legacy/.

Lynch, Joe. “David Bowie Influenced More Musical Genres Than Any Other Rock Star.” Billboard, 14

Jan. 2016, www.billboard.com/articles/news/6843061/david-bowie-influence-genres-rock-star.

“Plato Quotes.” BrainyQuote, Xplore, www.brainyquote.com/quotes/plato_109438.