In what year was David Bowie born?

David Bowie was born in 1947.

His full birth date was 8 January 1947, and his birthplace was Brixton, a district in south London. He was born David Robert Jones and grew up in the London area, later attending schools in Bromley. His early interests included music, art and performance, all of which became central to his later career.

Bowie’s birth year is sometimes confused with 1948 or 1949 because his breakthrough arrived years after his first recordings, and because his public image changed so dramatically across the 1970s. He was already an experienced performer by the time songs such as “Space Oddity” and “Life on Mars?” brought him wider attention.

Bowie died in New York on 10 January 2016, two days after his 69th birthday. His career spanned more than five decades, from his early 1960s groups through his final album, Blackstar, released shortly before his death.