Check out the best David Bowie quotes and song lyrics that celebrate creativity, individuality, reinvention, and the fearless spirit of one of the most influential artists of all time.
David Bowie, born David Robert Jones, was an English singer, songwriter, actor, and cultural trailblazer whose influence reshaped music, fashion, and pop culture.
Known for his fearless creativity, ever-evolving personas, and groundbreaking sound, he became a symbol of self-expression, originality, and artistic courage.
Bowie’s breakthrough came in 1969 with the release of “Space Oddity,” and throughout the 1970s, he created legendary personas such as Ziggy Stardust and the Thin White Duke, redefining what it meant to be a rock star.
With a career spanning over five decades, he created timeless hits such as “Heroes,” “Life on Mars?”, “Let’s Dance,” “Starman,” and “Changes,” influenced generations of artists worldwide.
His words — much like his music — continue to inspire creativity, confidence, reinvention, and the courage to embrace one’s truest self.
Here are the most famous David Bowie quotes that reflect his genius, individuality, and the timeless legacy of a true cultural icon.
Top 10 David Bowie Quotes
- “Speak in extremes, it’ll save you time. ” — David Bowie
- “Time may change me, but I can’t trace time.” — David Bowie
- “I find only freedom in the realms of eccentricity.” — David Bowie
- “Tomorrow belongs to those who can hear it coming.” — David Bowie
- “You can neither win nor lose if you don’t run the race.” — David Bowie
- “The greatest thing you’ll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return.” — David Bowie
- “I don’t know where I’m going from here, but I promise it won’t be boring.” — David Bowie
- “Make the best of every moment. We’re not evolving. We’re not going anywhere.” — David Bowie
- “Always go a little further into the water than you feel you’re capable of being in.” — David Bowie
- “Aging is an extraordinary process whereby you become the person you always should have been.” — David Bowie
Quotes From David Bowie
- “If it works, it’s out of date.” — David Bowie
- “I’m an instant star. Just add water and stir.” — David Bowie
- “There’s a terror in knowing what the world is about.” — David Bowie
- “What I like to do is try to make a difference with the work I do.” — David Bowie
- “Sometimes you stumble across a few chords that put you in a reflective place.” — David Bowie
- “Make the best of every moment. We’re not evolving. We’re not going anywhere.” — David Bowie
- “If you feel safe in the area you’re working in, you’re not working in the right area.” — David Bowie
- “Religion is for people who fear hell, spirituality is for people who have been there.” — David Bowie
- “Once you lose that sense of wonder at being alive, you’re pretty much on the way out…” — David Bowie
- “I’m always amazed that people take what I say seriously. I don’t even take what I am seriously.” — David Bowie
- “The truth is of course is that there is no journey. We are arriving and departing all at the same time.” — David Bowie
- “I re-invented my image so many times that I’m in denial that I was originally an overweight Korean woman.” — David Bowie
- “You would think that a rock star being married to a super-model would be one of the greatest things in the world. It is.” — David Bowie
- “Don’t you love the Oxford Dictionary? When I first read it, I thought it was a really really long poem about everything.” — David Bowie
- “I’m just an individual who doesn’t feel that I need to have somebody qualify my work in any particular way. I’m working for me.” — David Bowie
Best David Bowie Song Lyrics
- “We can be heroes just for one day.” — David Bowie, Heroes
- “Turn and face the strange changes.” — David Bowie, Changes
- “Don’t let me hear you say life takes you nowhere, angel.” — David Bowie, Golden Years
- “We live for just these twenty years Do we have to die for the fifty more?” — David Bowie, Young Americans
- “A small Jean Genie / Snuck off to the city / Strung out on lasers / And slash back blazers.” — David Bowie, Jean Genie
- “I’m not a prophet or a stone aged man Just a mortal with potential of a superman I’m living on.” — David Bowie, Quicksand
- “And you, You can be mean And I, I’ll drink all the time ‘Cause we’re lovers, And that is a fact Yes we’re lovers, And that is that.” — David Bowie, Heroes
- “And these children that you spit on As they try to change their worlds Are immune to your consultations. They’re quite aware of what they’re going through.” — David Bowie, Changes
- “It’s not the side-effects of the cocaine – I’m thinking that it must be love. It’s too late to be grateful, It’s too late to be hateful, It’s too late to be late again, The European canon is here.” — David Bowie, Station to Station
- “Look up here, I’m in heaven! I’ve got scars that can’t be seen I’ve got drama, can’t be stolen, Everybody knows me now (…) This way or no way You know I’ll be free Just like that bluebird Now, ain’t that just like me?” — David Bowie, Lazarus
Famous David Bowie Quotes
- “Planet earth is blue, and there is nothing I can do.” — David Bowie
- “Pixies and Sonic Youth were so important to the eighties.” — David Bowie
- “What is the quality you most like in a man? The ability to return books.” — David Bowie
- “It’s always time to question what has become standard and established.” — David Bowie
- “I change my mind a lot. I usually don’t agree with what I say very much. I’m an awful liar.” — David Bowie
- “As you get older the questions come down to two or three. How long have I got and what am I gonna do with the time I’ve got left?” — David Bowie
- “On the other hand, what I like my music to do to me is awaken the ghosts inside of me. Not the demons, you understand, but the ghosts.” — David Bowie
- “I always had a repulsive need to be something more than human. I felt very puny as a human. I thought, ‘Fuck that. I want to be a superhuman.” — David Bowie
- “I suppose for me as an artist it wasn’t always just about expressing my work; I really wanted, more than anything else, to contribute in some way to the culture I was living in.” — David Bowie
- “If you feel safe in the area you’re working in, you’re not working in the right area. Always go a little further into the water than you feel you’re capable of being in. Go a little bit out of your depth. And when you don’t feel that your feet are quite touching the bottom, you’re just about in the right place to do something exciting.” — David Bowie
Conclusion
What are your favorite David Bowie quotes and David Bowie sayings listed above? If there is a quote that we’ve missed, then let us know in the comments section what your thoughts are.
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