About David Bowie
"I suppose for me as an artist, it wasn't just about expressing my work. I really wanted, more than anything else, to contribute in some way to the culture I was living in."
- Born David Robert Jones on Jan. 8, 1947, in New York City. Died Jan. 10, 2016, in New York City.
- David Bowie burst onto the scene with his 1969 song "Space Oddity." The track, which was released as a 7-inch single, served as the opening song on his second studio album, David Bowie. Three years later, the boundary-pushing singer introduced his glam rock alter ego Ziggy Stardust and the 1972 album The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars.
- In 2006 Bowie was awarded a Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award. His 1972 single "Changes" was inducted into the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame in 2017.
- Lady Gaga performed a medley in tribute to the late icon on the 58th GRAMMY Awards.
- During the 59th GRAMMY Awards in 2017, the singer's legacy was honored when his 2016 album, Blackstar, swept all five awards it was nominated for: Best Rock Performance; Best Alternative Music Album; Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical; Best Recording Package; and Best Rock Song.
- Did you know? Bowie changed his name to David Bowie so as to avoid confusion with Davy Jones from The Monkees.
- In 2012, the GRAMMY Museum honored the 40th anniversary of The Rise and Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars with a special screening of the D.A. Pennebaker documentary/concert film, which featured Bowie and his backing group, The Spiders From Mars, performing at the Hammersmith Odeon on July 3, 1973.
- Bowie launched a campaign against African starvation with his single "Do They Know It's Christmas?" He helped raise awareness for HIV/AIDS in the late '90s. He also worked with the Keep a Child Alive nonprofit as well as contributed to Save the Children, Every Mother Counts, 21st Century Leaders, and The Lunchbox Fund, among other charities.
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