David Bowie's "Blackstar" Is Not About Death | OVR THNKR #18 

I always felt like " Blackstar " is the new David Bowie stage persona. Just like Ziggy stardust and The Thin white duke. I actually thought that before his death, When I heard the song the first time. I thought in his live shows he's going to be Blackstar. After he died I thought, In a way he actually has become Blackstar. He is a star that has died, No longer has any light.

I'm still so gutted by his passing, even to this day; that it doesn't matter what everything means, but to listen to his voice is calming, assuring that he left amazing lyrics and music to keep his legacy alive. RIP David. We miss you.

I believe the song is about transcendence, birth, rebirth, and death. It is about David Bowie's personal journey and grasping at the meaning of it all in his final days on earth. We are all made of stars and we all die. We return to space after the death of our own star only to eventually turn to cosmic dust and form new star systems. It is neverending. The serpent is uroboros, the snake eating it's own tail. Representing this same journey.

Strangely, I agree that the song isn't just about death. However, I think the Blackstar is David himself. He refrains, "I'm not a gangstar, I'm not a pornstar" which means he cannot be defined as anything that we could codifid him as. He was special, and that we could call him nothing else but a "Blackstar".

Don't forget Major Tom also appeared in Ashes to Ashes, leading most to believe he is a reflection of Bowie himself. The song, released soon after he rehabilitated from his drug years says "We know Major Tom's a junky, strung out on heaven's high hitting an all time low."

nothing lasts forever. this track is over looked by a lot of fans, some even refuse to listen to it. personally i think its one of his best pieces of work.

Personally, I think the song is more about the legacy Bowie left behind, along with a warning. Here is my take on it: The line is after all "Something happened on the day he died, spirit rose a meter and stepped aside something else took his place and bravely cried: I'm a blackstar". And what is a blackstar? Could it be like a black hole? A star that has basically died and become something else, but still has the same gravity. When Bowie died, his spirit left, his light extinguished... but his work and legacy still remain. You can still feel the pull of the gravity of his legacy. But it isn't him in charge anymore. His spirit has stepped aside. Now... Well, you know it's always kinda funny to me how much fandom is like religion in someways. And hence the warning: His fans will venerate him. His works will become like relics, like a skull crusted with gemstones. Even notice how fandom tends to create their own little 'rituals' of sorts? David Bowie the man is gone. David Bowie the icon is still there. Maybe it will be one day thought of as David Bowie the god. That I feel is the blackstar. A shadow image of Bowie in the minds of people, without the guidance of his human spirit. And every time we try to say what his work was actually about or what he was trying to say, we twist that shadow image a little. We move further away from the man and closer to our own shadow image of him. Yes I am aware of the irony of saying the song is about how people can twist his legacy by interpreting what his work was about, and this probobly isn't actually what the song is actually meant to be about. But I find the idea halarious. :P

I love seeing all these different interpretations of it. I think it might have been made to be open to interpretation on purpose, but I mean, the only man who knows for sure is dead.

vocally Bowie is saying: "in the Villa of ALL MEN." He does that quite often, lyrics are 1 thing, & the vocals say another.

I caught somewhere, that this song is about a philosophy book he read, about a cicle of three ages: the age of religion, the age of science, and the age of magic. The movie would be about the death of science (dead astronaut) and the birth of the earliest form of magic, fertility magic (phalic monster). This seems to be the overarching theme. The titular Blackstar... Whatever it is, it can possess a dead body, and take over our life and identity... Could be how Bowie's characters would just take over with little choice or agency... These two themes seem to be unrelated, and juxtaposed just for dissonance, I don't know...

There are many references to Christian believes and also occult knowledge. Is it a warning? A confession? Artistic expression? Or just to keep us guessing for the coming 30 years just for his own amusement before he died? I don't know and probably never will. Likely all of the above. The lyrics and video are full of symbolism and wordplay (which he loved to do) It is as usual multilayered. When he sang "I'm the great I AM" He could be playing the role of Lucifer/Satan mocking God. With "You're a flash in the pan" he could be referring to when he was called so in 1973. It could also be double layered meaning Pan the satyr or goat man (where the image of Satan comes from) playing his pipes. Is Satan linked with music and the music industry? David knew he was a "shy" Capricorn boy the goat with the fish tail who's planet is Saturn. "How many times does an angel fall? How many people lie instead of talking tall? He trod on sacred ground, he cried loud into the crowd (I'm a blackstar, I'm a blackstar, I'm not a gangstar)" The fallen angel is Lucifer who became Satan which is just a title meaning "the accuser" that is his role. "He is the Father of Lies." He wanted the throne of God. So maybe the line "He trod on sacred ground, he cried loud into the crowd (I'm a blackstar, I'm a blackstar, I'm not a gangstar)" is Satan standing on the holy mountain and claiming to be God trying to convince us he isn't such a bad guy (he's not a gangstar). But then again...we could all be reaching. I just focus on God and His son Jesus Christ and try my best not to F*** up too much.

Bowie subtley admitting his fascination and connection to dark energies and magick

Brilliant. I don't know if people know this but Bowie had been coming around toward a more and more Christian world view since the 90's. In the 70's he discovered the reality of Lucifer but by the 80's he concluded he was no light bringing but a cheat and the world of Lucifer was a maze to keep people wandering, searching and wasting time like in the film Labyrinth until their time was up. In other words, the Goblin King isn't so nice at all - he wants to possess but can't really love and is filled with rage even in his own kingdom. I think Bowie was so far out in Blackstar that it didn't get more traction as people just didn't understand it.

Well you gave me a whole new perspective on Bowie. A depth and appreciation that was almost written off too soon by seeing black star as demonic. But as you very plainly said the guilt has to be removed from our humanity, which is so much about living in a fallen world and realizing the possibility of an afterlife. Nice post. Scary song.

doesn't matter what is it about- it is the most magnificent piece ever written for popular music. Masterpiece on the very top of my list, high above clouds.

In some pagan belief systems the black sun represents bad knowledge. Like a regular sun it casts rays but the rays do not illuminate. A spreader of bad knowledge is a false prophet. When Bowie says he is a black star that is what he is saying about himself. He was a false prophet. He was among the very small group of music stars that ascended to unnatural heights to the point of almost being worshipped. And he did not deserve it. Blackstar is Bowie's judgment on his legacy. Evidence: Corrupted dancing - throughout the video there is a lot of dancing and all of it seems trance-like, spastic and hideous. But if you look closely at the dance moves they are corrupted versions of choreography used by Michael Jackson, Elvis, Mick Jagger and many others. This is to show that the effect of the blackstar (pop star) is hypnotic and negative. Buttons for eyes - Four characters in the video have buttons over bandaged faces where the eyes should be. This means not only are they blind but they are pretending to have sight. Falsehood. The button-eyed - who are these button-eyed pretenders? One is Bowie himself. The other three, on crosses like Jesus, are dressed like Michael Jackson, Elvis and Frank Sinatra. These are all Blackstars, the false prophets.

this song is about rebirth

there are so many theories and i am just shitting myself trying to decode it using my own intuition plus other opinions and its just overloading me and I am starting to think maybe its just a plain mind fuck and that he just left it behind with a theme but no real meaning that all ties into everything throughout his life because tbh i would do that just so my legacy lived on as long as humans are curious but honestly what a fucking legend hes just a god

I've always thought it might have to do with wormwood/nemesis/nibiru.... alot of black star songs out there for sure..

I think however you cut it it is a thought provoking song that was an amazing parting gift from a total genius

Wooow, beautiful explanation and EXTREMELY specific, your really great at exploring all these meanings, well done and please continue making these!

Blackstar is mentioned among many Occulted, and Esoteric Artists in the Music industry. Celldweller- blackstar, David Bowie- Black Star, Apparently Elvis, keep looking, it is all over.

Has anyone else noticed the set in Blackstar resembling an old attic has an uncanny resemblance to the set in the "Look Back in Anger" video? The theme of "Look Back" is pretty obvious. Also note that at the end of that video, he crawls under his bed. This under-the-bed image, as well as the beginning of both videos where he starts out in bed (uncomfortably) before his "death" is repeated in "Lazarus", yet another death/rebirth/transformation theme.

It's a perceptual awareness,. The eyes showing you what you want, and acceptance of wrong path because of the things we want. Willingly searching for the selfs wants and fulfilling them . And finding out that it's the wrong way after you get to the end of your journey. Realization of the fact you wanted it, and what you are.

Really good analysis. Mind blown at the major tom connection !

I always interpreted it as a legacy left for future generations to discover and enjoy. Many of Bowie's fans aren't even born yet! No Plan really hits that home. Bowie is effectively 'immortal' with pieces of the universe projecting his image to would be fans for decades if not centuries.

On my Christmas break and have time to actually listen and watch David Bowie. I have no idea what it is about. For me there is a lot of religious imagery. I thought he was singing 'In the City of All Men' so that took me in a completely different direction. It is dark and appear to have an occult resonance. Leaving aside my intellect it can be enjoyed without knowing what it means. Must revisit the album. Good for opening a discussion on it. Subscribed to your channel

Although heavily layered, I still think this was Bowie dealing with his very eminent mortality. We saw the young naive astronaut begin his lifelong trip by leaving Ormen in Space Oddity. We then saw the jaded drug addicted Major Tom in Ashes to Ashes. Then we see Major Tom dying on what may or may not be Ormen. OR, the unicode for Black Star is 2605. Mick Ronson's birthday. Ormen is also a town in Norway, where he "lost" Hermoine Farthingale. I'm sure there's a lot more symbolism of lost lives. As usual, with Bowie, there are 1000 ways to interpret this, and every single one could be right, or none.

Someone finally said it, first time I saw it I said, "That's the girl with the mousey hair"

wow, it make so much sense ! mainly knowing that bowie always had a great search for spiritual growing and knowledge. one of his friends told that in the last days he was so peacefull about the death and I really believe that he found the way he looked for. great video !

David Bowie his final persona is Thomas Jerome Newton, And his last work was the musical Lazarus. You can find al the final answers in that piece. I've seen Lazarus 150 times since i worked on the show.

one man once took our blackstar for us

EVERY MAN HAS A BLACK STAR = EVER MAN HAS A BLACK STAR (SOUL)

This is one of the best reviews/reactions I’ve ever seen on RU-vid. Why did you stop?

you cannot define a piece of poetry

I see this as an attempt to answer the question "Who Am I?" more than "Why do we die?." I see this as an exploration of the self and the metamorphasis in your understanding that occurs on death. In near-death experiences "something happened on the day he died, spirit rose a meter then stepped aside", some people witness the phenomenon of everything that you thought you were becoming no more real than a dream and who you are becoming abundantly clear. Who you really are cannot be seen (Like a black star), but is always there, you are the perceiver. "At the center of it all, your eyes." He repeats "I am not a" ((insert human trait)) "I'm the great I AM". Then returning to his person's life "Somebody else took his place and bravely cried, 'I'm a black star" acknowledging the human named Bowie declaring he is the great "I Am" is not him, because he is a great, black star, not this human. Don't ask me why I think this. "I can't answer why, just go with me"

Thanks. Very insightful, and the most “understandable” explanation of “Blackstar” so far, your review stands out as the sanest out of all the crazed, kooks spouting absolute coddswallap.....although. It is only a song, and it’s themes have have been visited many times before throughout his career. Blackstar’s ideas remind me of “Station to Station” where Germanic/Nordic and the Kabbalah are interwoven throughout its 10 minutes length , similar to Blackstar’s time. What “Blackstar” has a achieved is a confirmation of Bowie’s art, and your theory of transcendence, rings true. Bowie( I feel) set out to make a final statement of art, and he nailed it with Blackstar.

Still turns upsidedown mind emotions and passion

I read somewhere at the time of his death that blackstar was a name given to a type of cancer. I also think the song is a distant recalling of his dalliance with Hermoine Farthingale who left him and went to Norway to make a film. His songs can be described at best as a smoke and mirrors thing, so much is there and it depends on your personal preference of circumstance

In the Musical Lazarus David Bowie changed some of the texts of his old songs, they make they key in understanding the greater mystery.

Pls correct me if I'm wrong but, no one noticed that Elvis and Bowie have the same birthdays (January 8)? That is what made this song a little more spooky (and cool) for me. Now I'm listening to Elvis' version daily!

Hmm, nice theory but I'm not convinced. Bowie did not recognise Satan or any other symbol related to Christianity, he was closer to Buddha in the end and consequently had no archetypes worth singing about. I have no alternative theory to foster and appreciate the song for what it is; an enigmatic talking point.

Black star is tabula rasa, a blank canvas. It defies labels and underlies existence. It's the eternal dao that gives way to a myriad things (musically in our case).

I don’t get how the black star represents guilt and how guilt is the cause of death. I agreed with what you were saying before that, then you just made a huge leap.

Just a theory: a 'dark star' =eclipse=supernova. A cosmic magic trick by The Master

my PawPaw says the song is about smoking weed.

Holy shit yah got it son. Here's a cookie.

It sounds like "The process" by Kafka

When I first heard this I thought the lyric was "in the fear of all men,burns a solitary candle". It made sense.

The Black Star is Sirius. Or the second sun. The Black sun. The SS had a symbol for it. It was supposed to give energy, vitality, and power to those who believed in it. BTW. My avatar/ symbol is of our beautiful Milky way Galaxy. Not to be confused with the aforementioned.

Have you ever thought Blackstar could be about St. Lucy? And St Lucy’s role as protector in Dante’s Inferno?

Wow, good interpretation. I found myself listening to it today, been awhile. Each time I see something new, more meaning. Thanks for your vid.

Theres the connection to his son's Duncan Jones film Moon, the main character discovers he is imprisoned on the moon as a clone, as countless Clones. That image of major tom on the moon and the general obscurity tells me there's more to this piece than just death. I've been thinking (if) the Dali Lama reincarnations are real, perhaps the souls of musicians, and other geniuses of their craft are too... it can explain why some musicians are born with natural gift, many who are have parents in high ranks in the military/government and were likely groomed to become Frank zappas, jim Morrisons, Brian Wilson, thom yorke, Beatles, marilyn Manson, elvis, bowie...etc.

Perhaps the only way to transcend is to sacrifice the ego-the false self. Spirit over matter.

guys You still did not get it. David Brother's went out of his head on acid watching Kubrick's Odyssey. The smile sign You see on major tom was the most common blotter stamp at David's time. Than he speaks about Hermione Forthingale showing the inspiration (the girl that drives him) and the knowledge of death through the loss of his father and brother, major tom, died and rescued as the golden skull now that he is approaching the end. The transformation is there, he did alchemy, he transcended the poor faith of humanity "life goes against itself" "life gives what he takes away from You". He knows how the exasperate usage of drugs destroyed his life but gave him the false illusion to be guided in the long "trip" of his life, from Ziggy to all the expressions of his Psychosis, the gift to the world of a man that was touched by Genius, Charm, extreme intelligence, beauty, wit, and the capacity of revolutionizing the music and art during the second half of the 20th century. thanks David

If I may suggest, if you want a deeper interpretation of this song, you should read the poem The Hollow Men by T S Eliot. I think that a lot of imagery from that poem was used by Bowie in his art. It also gives context to the three scarecrows in the field. Yes, they probably symbolise the crucifixion but they symbolise much more.

i really enjoyed hearing these thoughts. i just started to delve into david bowie's songs and movies now. i'm not sure why it took this long. but i think i will find what i am looking for and why i am suddenly drawn to it now. and this helped, thanks!

I don't care if he's a BLACK STAR or a STAR MAN,,, He is my STAR 🌠 and he is missed,,,,😥

Well apparently he wasn't terminal when he wrote this and others from the Black star album and my understanding is the terminal diagnosis was only about 3 months before the end. Nevertheless, I can't help thinking that he was deeply contemplating his own mortality at this point. He had been unwell and he did indeed have cancer. I kind of want blackstar to be about death because then for me, he becomes a true hero through his final artistic acts.

The woman has a tail because shes a witch born the 7th girl in a line, they were supposedly born with a tail

David bowie rocks.

The song Blackstar is not about death but about dying which is our masterpiece of life for all of us.

video I really needed to see. wish it went longer.

And I like David Bowie's music to this day he mixes a lot of artistry and symbolism and meaning in his music

I think david bowie is not talking about himself in this song He is somehow prophesying about someone else. look at his facial expressions when he was talking about the solitary candle at the begining of the song It seems in that scene that he is seeing something and predicting something He is predicting the coming of a blackstar who is also a solitary candle in the villa of ormen(ormen means serpent so probably it means the realm of satan and in the new testament this world is the realm of satan apostle paul called this world the evil present world and also christ called satan the master of this world )so actually the black star who Ironically is the solitary candle too is somehow a religius figure Or even maybe the solitary candle (who is a good creature in the dark evil world) and black star are not the same people But if there is one thing that I am sure about is that at least the solitary candle part of the song is bowie's prophetic prediction about some christ like figure, pay attention when bowie was saying "your eyes" about the solitary candle which shows that he had a person in his mind when he was writing this

Not very comforting that my very first email address, quite a while ago was... Black_star013 haha

In occultism, a black star is the other energy, representing mystery and the unknown energy of magic ( he was obsessed with occultism his whole life)

Yeah WOW, I really thought this was going to be shit, how wrong could I have been. If anything you really gave me a whole new dimension/s for this album to mull over. Not that I had thought it was about anything in particular beforehand......I had already realised one thing though, this is possibly one of the best songs ever written.

Man...... I don’t know where you got all this information but your the only one that makes correct sense

First off, you have nice skin. Also great video! I've been listening to Blackstar over and over trying to figure it out, this makes a lot of sense.

So the story about the scapegoat? Jesus, becomes sin and gets blamed and saves the people who can get their sin covered by the scapegoats greater sin?

Amazing analysis. You made my year

The Astronaut in Blackstar is not Major Tom but Thomas Jerome Newton, The man Who Fell to Earth. who left again in the Musical Lazarus, all the secrets are revealed in that musical.

So open-heart it’s pain.

If it is to be believed, the book of Revelation describes the fallen angels/demons as Stars that were cast out of Heaven onto the earth.

I think you have the best interpretation that I have seen yet. Thanks for your thoughts!

El album BLACKSTAR, son las confesiones antes de morir de BOWIE... que es la ESTRELLA NEGRA, por supuesto ... EL ASTRO/DIVO PERVERSO The BLACKSTAR album, is BOWIE's confessions before he died ... which is the BLACK STAR, of course ... THE PERVERSE ASTRO / DIVO.

I’d love to hear more about his marriage to Iman, who is Muslim. It’s uncommon for a Muslim woman to marry a non-Muslim, so I’m curious about how that came to be.

ELvis and David shared the same Birthday as well! Jan 8th.

Maybe he was trying to understand something about him and how he was going to continus or dissapear...another bowie's story...a great artist

As old as this is, you sir are on the money!👍🇦🇺

search for Aleister Crowley and Ormen

None of the analysis videos I've seen so far of this video/these videos (from Blackstar, the LP) include the fact that the astronaut's costume is the same (or strongly references, see smiley face) as used in his son, Duncan Jones', movie 'Moon'. Now, I don't wish to spoil the great film for anyone who hasn't seen it, but I think it's worth considering what might connect the two (video/song story & movie/story) with the facts of: 1) referencing his progeny & 2) the possible common themes/symbolism/emotional exposition between David's life/death/music, & Duncan's film.

Wow this was deep. Thank you for this.

So the black book with the black star on it, that he keeps showing everyone, is the Law?

You speak pretty confidently about the meaning of the piece, but I think you are missing a lot. Every little element of the video has a specific esoteric meaning related to Bowie’s belief system, which may generally be considered occult based. Please do more research about Bowie and the black star symbol.

Fascinating !!...tend to think of his take on humanity, reincarnation and cycle of life--all good...what great about Bowie is there is no one right interpretation.

Interesting that he said someone took his place . Would make the rebirth a whole lot easier to explain .

think you missed the point its a song about fame, the next black star will be the next star after he has passed

There's so many different interpretations of this record, and obviously this is just another one however but by all accounts Bowie did get involved in the occult and there's certainly some mysterious aspects to this record, and no one would seriously disagree that Bowie was a great artist, maybe for some death is sign of our imperfections, but for me it's natural and that serpent which actually most likely represents the mother Earth has it's own natural rhythms and on this planet there would not be life without death

It's about transcendence

Black Star taken by Jesus

You don't understand the "I am" This is an experience. We are here for awhile. Indeed Satan is the black star. Satan is cronos chronos, Saturn, kronos , father time. Father time devouring his children. Time. We don't have much time. This body is just a suit. Transportation to experience this reality. We are passengers of the universe.

His Major Tom alter-ego has been long established. Maybe we can think of Bowie - who as an iconoclast embodied so many different personas - proclaiming "I'm a Blackstar", that only he truly knew who he was at the end, leaving us with a perplexing mystery, as his skeletal remains are committed to the void. What is not often discussed, are the women manifesting a "demon" through their ritual, who goes after patriarchal scarecrow figures. There is a lot in there as well.

Wow, interesting thoughts, I think you are right. Could you expand more please?

theres WAY more to this than is discussed

I wonder if David Biwie told this dude this id how he made song for. And whts david bowie connected to kanye west?

Excellent! Thanks for your insight.

This guy talks tripe but it's his tripe his personal opinion.My own interpretation is also tripe Bowie's album is a hynotically strange kind of madness that is put together brilliantly in its format. Bowie was always 10 years before his time musically and visually.

Some of you are very close. Go study the anatomy of the eye. Being born upside down the wrong way arround.. It's because to see you have to turn things upside down for the real intent. Bowie new this. Hermetics and alchemy are also present. I'm not finished analyzing it either. Tell after tell.