British pop icon and contemporary music legend David Bowie's achievements are all but apparent to the general population, with London's V&A Museum even constructing a permanent show in his name.
From his time as Ziggy Stardust to his stint as Major Tom and even later in his final album, "Blackstar," the multi-chart-topping artist has time and time again exhibited great economic and artistic successes.
That said, Bowie's 1999 release, "Hours," has been overlooked as perhaps one of the most influential records an artist has ever put out in recent contemporary times, as it is the first major record by a pre-eminent musician on an established label to have ever released digitally before a physical release.
Bowie's 'Hours,' a Pioneer of Digital Downloads
In an article by Rolling Stone dated August 1999, written ahead of the record's September release date, the pop culture magazine described "Hours" as Bowie's second "cyber-coup" and realization of the artist's deep fascination with online releases at the time.
"Hours" wasn't even Bowie's first attempt at the then-revolutionary means of doling out new music, as his "Telling Lies" record preceded it by three years in 1996. In addition, he has also embraced "webcasting" and even launched his own internet service provider called "BowieNet" in 1998.
In the particular excerpt from the issue, Rolling Stone quoted Bowie explaining his recent album at the time, where he said: "I couldn't be more pleased to have the opportunity of moving the music industry closer to the process of making digital downloads available as the norm and not the exception."
"We are all aware that broadband opportunities are not yet available to the overwhelming majority of people, and therefore expect the success of this experiment to be measured in hundreds and not thousands of downloads," he added.
Bowie concluded his statement by saying that he hopes the online release of his "Hours" record will serve a similar purpose akin to the "small steps" that "color television broadcasts and film content" served for the momentous innovation that are "home videotapes."
Bowie's Incredibly Prescient Take on the Internet
In a 1999 interview with BBC Newsnight's Jeremy Paxman, this stance was reiterated by Bowie as he shared his seemingly prophetic take on the internet's impact on politics, art, and society as a whole, let alone his own music.
"I don't think we've even seen the tip of the iceberg," he exclaimed to Paxman, who was cynically on the fence about the subject. "I think the potential of what the internet is going to do to society, both good and bad, is unimaginable. I think we're actually on the cusp of something exhilarating and terrifying."
When Paxman disregarded it as a mere "tool," Bowie can be seen springing from his seat to counter the interviewer's statement, saying, "No, it's not. No - it's an alien life form!"
Many years later, and even after the artist's death, he was proven unequivocally right by the multi-trillion dollar contributions of the innovation as of late.
In fact, in 2020, the global management firm of McKinsey & Company said the internet has contributed to an astronomical $2.45 trillion to the US' overall GDP that year.
Adding to this, the systemic overhaul of entertainment that occurred with the rise of streaming giants like YouTube, Netflix, and Spotify, the internet has indeed grown into the convoluted "alien life form" that Bowie saw glimpses of back in the 90s.
He truly is a visionary decades ahead of his time.
