Those who didn't really grow up to watch David Bowie grow old, only know that he is this "weird" musician with different colored pupils and unsettling music videos. Little did they know that from being the Starman to Lord Royal Highness on the first episode of Spongebob, David Bowie is an all around artist with performances that are never short of beauty.
In the tributes that float around the internet, you will always read things like 'so much more than just a rock star' and 'more than just his fame'. That is true, indeed, for Bowie has made remarkable and radical changes not just for the industry of music, but business as well.
He even started his own internet service provider called Bowie.net, which later on became davidbowie.com. In 1999, he launched his own bank and a radio station, as reported by Forbes. Bowie also pioneered a new investment vehicle upon his creation of Bowie Bonds. His music was also bought by companies such as Microsoft for advertisement purposes. Yes, he was not just a rock star, but a very effective businessman as well.
Bowie's very unconventional sense of style has been adapted by the modern day artists as well. People like Kanye West, Lady Gaga and Madonna admit to have been under a great deal of Bowie influence and were all just as devasted by the news of his passing.
In 2000, Bowie was able to give an astounding interview with BBC's Jerry Paxman in which he said: "Rock and roll is now a career opportunity, and the internet carries the flag for the subversive and rebellious, chaotic and nihilistic...the monopolies do not have a monopoly anymore. I think the potential of what the internet is going to do to society, both good and bad is imaginable." Bowie did this interview back when the internet does not have its groundbreaking effect just yet, and when no one understood well the effect it would have on cultures.
