David Bowie was Steve Jobs if he Could Play 12 Instruments

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A while ago a video of David Bowie predicting the future of the internet in 1999 went viral.

We're used to today's celebrities embracing new technology (*cough* crypto), but it's always with a wink and a nod. Nobody in their right mind believes Jimmy Fallon is an NFT trailblazer. But Bowie wasn't jumping on the bandwagon at its peak — he was talking about the future of the internet just a few years after this infamous segment on The Today Show.

He even said: "If I was 19 again, I’d bypass music and go right to the internet."

In 1996, Bowie shocked the world when he released a new song as an online-only release on his official website. The single included an online messaging service, in which Bowie and two others answered questions from the audience, with Bowie answering truthfully and the two imposters responding with lies. The audience was then asked to vote on the real Bowie. Reports are conflicting over whether Bowie came in first or last.

Then, in 1999, Bowie launched Bowienet — one of the first examples of an artist using the internet as a D2C platform. It was designed to provide Bowie's fans with exclusive content and experiences including access to an online community where fans could interact with each other, a personalized page for subscribers, as well as an E-commerce store.

Oh yeah, Bowienet also offered email and web hosting services to subscribers. If anyone knows how to get a @bowienet email address please hit me up.

Bowie's groundbreaking innovation in the realm of finance was just as impactful for future generations of artists.

In 1997, David Bowie introduced Bowie Bonds. Backed by the revenue streams of Bowie's future album sales, as well as his back catalog of music, Bowie Bonds were revenue bonds, meaning they were based on the revenue generated by a specific asset. These financial instruments date back to the early 20th century in America when it was used to finance the construction of infrastructure like the Pennsylvania Turnpike and the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

The bonds were backed by the revenue streams of Bowie's future album sales and catalog of music. The initial cost to investors was $1,000 with a 10-year term.

I'd be remiss to not mention that The Guardian blamed Bowie Bonds for inspiring the banks to cause the subprime mortgage crisis. Cool.

Similar to the prophetic nature of Bowie's D2C internet service, these radical financial instruments would be a sign of things to come in the music industry as artists increasingly looked for new ways to monetize their catalogs.

• In 2000, the estate of James Brown issued bonds backed by the revenue streams of his music catalog.

• In 2003, the songwriting duo Ashford and Simpson issued bonds backed by the revenue streams of their music catalog.

• In 2005, the heavy metal band Iron Maiden issued bonds backed by the revenue streams of their music catalog

• In 2006, the British pop duo The Pet Shop Boys issued bonds backed by the revenue streams of their music catalog.

• In 2007, the hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan announced plans to issue bonds backed by the revenue streams of their music catalog, but it's unclear if these bonds actually issued.

This trend has died down in recent years, but other methods of financializing musical IP have remained strong — with multiple artists selling their catalogs for massive payouts (including Bowie's Estate).

There's also the matter of blockchain technology being used to sell songs like NFTs, which certainly seems like a direct spiritual inheritor of Bowie Bonds, but since I really don't want to have to write about NFTs, I'm not gonna...

TLDR: Bowie is a fucking legend. Listen to my favorite song ever written, Five Years, and check out this cassette tape I bought a while ago.