The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust
Creation of an rockstar
David Bowie always fascinated me. What are your thoughts about Bowie, his music and art? Share your thoughts on Bowie, Ziggy and the album below!
Since the beginning of our existence our eyes reach towards the sky above us. In the night, when the darkness can be intriguing, its the light given by the trillions of stars above us, which senses a feeling of hope. A hope that even in the worst moments, there will be a light shining through. But what happened on one not so ordinary day, is truly mindblowing.
When one of the stars came down to earth, he was nothing like expected. Dressed in a glamarous jumpsuit, wearing knee-high boots and with a bright red mullet as hairstyle, he was different from what we ever imagined. His name was Ziggy, like a name made up. An alien you might say, but not even that in the traditional sense. Ziggy, first and foremost, was one thing: A true rockstar!
But Ziggy came with a mission.
Earth was dying. The world we spent our whole existence on was collapsing under the lack of remaining resources. Only five years remained, and hope became a concept for the delusional. But then came Ziggy, the glowing messenger from the stars, a being who gave humanity, in equal parts, hope and fear.
When Bowie introduced Ziggy to the world in 1972, he already stood on the edge of stardom. His song Space Oddity brought him fame and “Major Tom,” arguably his first creation of a character, became a synonym for space travel. But Bowie was never happy with just a couple of hits; he wanted bigger things. He wanted to express truths and thoughts not welcomed back then. But as Bowie, that wasn’t imaginable... as Ziggy, that became possible.
The Creation of Ziggy Stardust
Ziggy may have descended from the stars, but his creation was a massive effort by Bowie. To create his iconic persona, he combined all kinds of inspirations, wanting to confront the conventional ideas of the time. Pulling pieces from Iggy Pop's raw rockstar energy and combining them with the music of Lou Reed, he also cited Vince Taylor as part of his persona. After a breakdown, Taylor believed himself to be a cross between God and an alien (isn't that exactly Ziggy?).
But Bowie wasn't finished creating his persona, because Ziggy also needed the fitting clothes. Wearing a bright red mullet haircut, similar to the one in Space Oddity, he was not just instantly recognizable but also set a later fashion trend: the Ziggy cut. Perhaps more iconic were the glamorous jumpsuits he wore, with open chest and in bright, recognizable colors. The outfit was completed with cuffed trousers and knee-high, lace-up boots. Key to the unique look was designer and friend Freddie Burretti. Especially the early outfits of Bowie and his backing band, The Spiders From Mars, were inspired by the Droogs in Stanley Kubrick's film A Clockwork Orange.
I had just seen A Clockwork Orange earlier in the month and had been galvanized not only by Kubrick’s startling visualisation of Burgess’s novel but also his take on functional-chic youth outfits. To lessen the image of violence I decided we should go for extremely colourful and exotic materials in place of the Droog white cotton. I had found a quite lovely piece of faux-deco material in a Cypriot street market a year before and now claimed that for my own. - David Bowie, Moonage Daydream: The Life and Times of Ziggy Stardust
On top of that, Bowie gave Ziggy pale skin, described by him as a "snow-white tan." After meeting the kabuki theatre star Bando Tamasaburo, his makeup became influenced by traditional Japanese styles. Adding to the alien-like look was Bowie's decision to shave off his eyebrows.
Ziggy blurred the lines between humanity and the extraterrestrial, the masculine and the feminine, and between himself and Bowie. This effort wasn’t just for the videos, but for every performance, interview, and photograph. By the late stage of his tour, Bowie would spend over two hours getting his makeup done.
Ziggy as a Symbol of Rebellion
And so, Ziggy was not just a star fallen from the heavens. He was the symbol of a new movement, the prophet the world desired. He promised that in five years, the world would not endure a painful ending, but a change for the better. When Ziggy played his guitar, the world listened - some were terrified, while others worshipped their newfound superstar.
As mentioned before, Bowie wanted to express feelings and thoughts that were contrary to his time. And the best way to do so was by using Ziggy. What Bowie often couldn’t express, he left to Ziggy. And with the help of his persona, he didn’t just push boundaries, but stepped over them and declared them to be non-existent.
As Ziggy (and sometimes Bowie), he expressed acceptance and openness for sexual preferences, as well as the will to experiment with them. At a time where sexuality, let alone same-sex relationships, was a large taboo topic, it was Bowie who didn’t bother to declare himself and Ziggy to be bisexual. Furthermore, Bowie expressed those thoughts whenever he got on stage as Ziggy. Bright and colorful makeup was paired with genderless clothes, sometimes see-through and often revealing skin in, for that time, provoking ways. Bowie was bold and keen on destroying the picture of conventional norms regarding sexuality, but also toxic masculinity.
He did not feel ashamed to appear feminine, provoking, sexual, or to even engage in touchy scenes on stage. What he did was an open rebellion to society’s limits - something Ziggy also preached in the album’s storyline. By taking those risks, Bowie shaped immensely how artists expressed themselves in the coming decades, and influenced their comfort in openly showcasing their sexuality. He was the role model for laying off your boring clothes and starting to become the identity you secretly always wanted to be.
By doing so, he endured immense pressure and hate from society and media, who both were fascinated as well as scared of the bisexual Bowie. Some tried to boycott his concerts, others tried to call him a provocateur. Others even went so far as to call him a communist or “the gay singer.” But Bowie didn’t care - neither did Ziggy.
Ziggy and the Artist
For Bowie, music always was more than just a sound. Perhaps driven by his wish (and later successful pursuit) of an acting career, he turned his music into a full-on theatre experience. What he had already started crafting before, he fully perfected on The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. It wasn't just an album, nor just a concept - it was a whole universe. Storyline, aesthetics, and live performances were all bound together to create a character that was alive in far more than the music. Ziggy Stardust became his own kind of entity, and allowed Bowie to step beyond the role of musician and become something larger than life.
With Ziggy, Bowie redefined the concept album, making it a total art form. Now the songs didn't just tell a story - Ziggy went on stage to present it, appeared in interviews and public appearances, and included them in the narrative. Every detail was carefully crafted and considered: the costumes, makeup, gestures, words chosen, lighting, and choreography. Bowie wasn't simply playing Ziggy - he was living him to an extent never seen before.
The creation of Ziggy was a wide-layered mix of influences: science fiction and space, rock n roll life and excess, kabuki theatre. By using different approaches and taking inspiration from different forms of expressionism, Bowie turned Ziggy into something real.
At the heart of it was fashion. With his bright and colorful jumpsuits, eye-catching makeup, and iconic red mullet, Bowie transformed his look into a key part of his storytelling. Through work with designers like Freddie Burretti and Kansai Yamamoto, he created costumes that captured Ziggy's extraterrestrial space look. The bold colors and material choices only helped shape Ziggy as an immediately recognizable character and establish that flamboyant glam rock aesthetic.
Through Ziggy, Bowie blurred boundaries and allowed himself to pursue creative directions in theatre, music, and performance art. It was more than entertainment, it was a vision that turned a theme and persona into something revolutionary.
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And so, the alien rockstar's light burned brighter than ever, with millions following his voice and guitar playing. Ziggy, who had come to rescue the world, was now more occupied with being a global superstar. His songs now carried the world, and his success only made his ego grow.
The Death of Ziggy Stardust
After proclaiming the message of the inevitable arrival of the Starman, Ziggy found himself in a rather worldly situation. Consumed by the excess of being a rockstar, his eyes began to symbolize intergalactic stardom instead of salvation.
Despite Ziggy's immense success, Bowie quickly ended the whole persona after some time. The pressure of success, along with the long preparations required before every performance, started taking a toll on his mental and physical health. According to Bowie in his book Moonage Daydream: The Life & Times of Ziggy Stardust, he became bored of Ziggy and lost the inspiration to keep performing.
Bowie kept parts of the character in his follow-up album Aladdin Sane, before ending Ziggy's time entirely.
For only 10 months, between June 1972 and April 1973, Ziggy performed and yet he was celebrated by millions. Bowie retired him during a live performance on 3 July 1973 at London's Hammersmith Odeon. Before the final song, Bowie surprised fans by announcing:
"Of all the shows on this tour, this particular show will remain with us the longest, because not only is it the last show of the tour, but it's the last show that we'll ever do."
Bowie did what many can’t: create something hugely successful and retire it at its peak. Ziggy’s death became symbolic, and with the simple line, "Ziggy played guitar" the alien rockstar said goodbye.
Ziggy is at the peak of his existence. The Starman - that’s himself, he believes. Kept alive by his disciples, he tours around the world and reaches for more and more. But to Ziggy’s regret, he is not the messiah, the Starman he so loudly announced. Once the Starman arrives, he tears Ziggy to pieces onstage, ironically giving him his end during the song "Rock ’n’ Roll Suicide."
The Lasting Impact of Ziggy Stardust
Ziggy was over, but Bowie’s career was not. Over the decades, he continued to release successful albums, even creating new personas like The Thin White Duke or Button Eyes. With each new album and persona, he introduced a new sound and experimented with different directions.
Yet, Ziggy’s shadow never truly disappeared. The alien rockstar left a mark on how future artists would use persona, performance, and fashion to shape their art. Ziggy opened the door for musicians to break free from expectations and norms, and to craft their own worlds rather than just songs.
Today, plenty of artists take direct or indirect inspiration from Ziggy. From Gaga, who once said her “whole career is a tribute to David Bowie,” to Madonna, inspired by his innovative approach to music, or Lorde, who has expressed her admiration for Bowie several times. Whenever Beyoncé becomes Sasha Fierce on stage, or when The Weeknd takes us through his character’s story, there’s a little Ziggy in that.
And maybe that is already the biggest impact Ziggy had, but for sure, not the only one.
As mentioned in the beginning, Bowie is an artist who fascinates me. Without a doubt one of the most influential artists of all time, and one of my personal favorites. But now it’s your turn to share your opinion!
Let me know in the comments:
Your thoughts about the album, David Bowie and Ziggy Stardust!
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This is a bottle of wine conversation. I love Bowie, Ziggy, everything.
I’ve never been a Bowie person.
Not out of dislike — just that his wavelength didn’t quite line up with mine. But reading about Ziggy, I get why he mattered: an artist who turned music into mythology, style into story.
📌 You don’t have to love Bowie to respect how he expanded music.
⬖ Noticing artistry beyond personal taste at Frequency of Reason: bit.ly/4jTVv69