David Bowie is now one of the most prominent figures in the music industry, thanks to his experimental approach to music. The idea of change was the most important thing that marked Bowie’s career; he created various stage personas, shifted his style towards innovative sounds, and influenced many artists with his sense of fashion that evolved throughout the years. In the end, he became the mastermind of stagecraft and a timeless icon in the music scene.
After a music career full of achievements, the ‘Heroes’ singer died on January 10, 2016, after losing his battle against liver cancer. He could’ve passed away years ago, though, as he was on the murder list of John Lennon’s killer. Apparently, Ziggy couldn’t dodge the bullet this time, and his death devastated hundreds of thousands of fans worldwide. One of the tragic details of Bowie’s death was that he passed away two days after his 69th birthday and the release of his final album ‘Blackstar.’
Following the release of the record and David Bowie’s untimely passing, his producer and longtime collaborator Tony Visconti revealed that ‘Blackstar’ was Bowie’s swan song. So, he implied the musician had predicted his own death. When looking through the songs’ lyrics, many of his fans noticed that they revolved around the theme of impending death. However, one particular track from the album had a more evident meaning than the others in this sense. Titled ‘Lazarus,’ the song was believed to be David’s way of saying goodbye.
‘Lazarus’ was the second single from David Bowie’s ‘Blackstar,’ and his last single to be released. The official music video for the song was released three days before his passing. During the shooting of the video, Bowie found out that his cancer was terminal, and his doctors decided to end his treatment. So, seeing David’s head covered with a bandage and buttons sewn over his eyes, lying on a deathbed, came to mean so much more after finding out about this fact.
Looking through the lyrics of ‘Lazarus,’ it can be assumed that Bowie predicted his own death and the increased attention he would get after departing from this world. Following Bowie’s passing, the lines ‘Look up here; I’m in heaven / I’ve got scars that can’t be seen’ appeared in many publications, and his predictions turned out to be true — he broke the record for Vevo’s most viewed artist in a single day, and ‘Blackstar’ debuted at number one on worldwide album charts.
Tony Visconti, who worked with David Bowie on ‘Blackstar,’ issued a statement a day after the tragic news. According to what Visconti said, Bowie wrote ‘Blackstar’ for his fans as a parting gift. “He always did what he wanted to do,” he wrote. “And he wanted to do it his way, and he wanted to do it the best way. His death was no different from his life — a work of art. He made ‘Blackstar’ for us, his parting gift.”
The title ‘Lazarus’ refers to the Biblical figure Lazarus of Bethany, who was raised from the dead by Jesus. So this also reveals David Bowie’s mindset when recording this song and confirms that he knew he would have his albums on all charts after his death. He died peacefully with his family surrounding him — and the lyrics and the music video for ‘Lazarus’ can be seen as Bowie’s last goodbye, reassuring his loved ones that he will be ‘free just like that bluebird.’
