tpaine posted:

i bet you just like to criticize bowie because he was androgynous and you're a secret transphobe,

I don't really see any evidence that Bowie made any challenge to gender norms (especially compared to, uh, grace jones) but ok. I think bowie is more representative of artistic cis men who are able to safely flirt with drag and homosexuality as long as they mostly marry a supermodel and tirelessly advocate for romantic love. Yknow someone posted this here the other day and it's right. And the class character of Bowie's music is undeniable even if they were enough of a genius to sometimes, and even frequently, expand beyond bourgeois sentimentality. A great example is "kooks" which has a fundamentally privileged vision - imagine saying "Hey if you don't want to do your homework, we'll just burn it and go cruise the city" to your black kid in Amerika, like yeah society will really treat your kid well if you make that a habit. The song is predicated on an intense individualism and reflects an unhealthy "us against the world" parenting dynamic that is the subject of so many cute af movies about what it must be like to grow up poor. The song is about growing up bohemian. Keep in mind I love "kooks" and think it's severely underrated, but that's due to the deep scars bourgeois society has left in me psyche