Kirsty Bosley: It'll be a sad day for the music world if artists are censored

When the line ‘these children that you spit on as they try to change their worlds, are immune to your consultations, they’re quite aware of what they’re going through’ played, I felt as through I’d been socked in the guts. I’m not sure why it happened – it was a surprise moment of mourning for a man I’d never met. I didn’t listen to him every day and, though I loved his musical and cinematic creations, I would never have listed myself as a super fan.

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But there in the fridge, amid the condiments and cheese, I let out a little sob. I think it took me by surprise because I normally try to avoid the sycophantic ‘RIP whoever’ outpourings following the death of a celebrity. I find it to be a little bit vulgar, to dip in to the collective grief just because it’s relevant right now. Because it’s trending.

The death of David Bowie, though, felt different. It felt as though a light had dimmed. The loss was not only of a human being – flesh, bones and really cool hair – but of everything that he represented.

I believe that the reason the loss was so deeply felt across the world was because what he represented was different for everyone who his work had touched.

To me, the way he truly owned who he was was inspirational. I can’t imagine what it must have been like when he burst on to the scene as Ziggy Stardust, all strange and androgynous. The world that David Bowie blossomed in was a world that did not, on a mainstream level, allow strange androgyny to flourish. And yet here he was, in his full face of slap, neckerchiefs and skin-tight all-in-ones looking like, well, they can’t have known what.

Weird, all at once, became just fine. His sexual ambiguity enthralled the world. Men with a penchant for make-up or women’s clothes were given an opportunity to just be themselves with no need to explain.

The way that Bowie reinvented himself was honest and exciting. So often, artists claim to always ‘stay true to themselves’.

But Bowie acknowledged his own personal and artistic growth and change through his various guises. So few can claim to have given so much to their art, and so with his death came a true sense of sorrow.

The legacy of the freedom that David Bowie has given to musicians and music-lovers everywhere is one that will live on forever. As will his incredible hits. Just last week, our editor Emily gave birth to her daughter Edie to the sounds of Let’s Dance. It was the first thing baby Edie ever heard in her life, and she’ll grow up in a house that celebrates his talent. It’s these acts of remembrance and celebration, no matter how small, that will keep the memory of him alive. Some things don’t ever really die, after all.

I didn’t know Bowie personally, but I am grateful for what parts of himself he chose to give to us via his art. It’s no wonder that I cried then – I hadn’t initially realised that he meant that much to me. . .

So, when I heard the news that Kanye West was rumoured to be working on a tribute album to celebrate the artist’s life, and saw the furore that followed, I was very annoyed. Though not for what you might consider to be the obvious reasons.

If you haven’t heard the whispers yourself, I’ll explain. This week, a petition circulated online to ‘stop Kanye West recording covers of David Bowie’s music’.

At the time of writing this, it had received 10,000 signatures from Bowie fans, who posted comments like: “I’ve been a Bowie fan for 47 years and his music is precious to me”, “by recording an album, he will ruin Bowie’s music for everyone, forever” and my personal favourite, “no plz no. . .”

The reason for the petition, according to the campaign creator, is this: “David Bowie was one of the single most important musicians of the 20th and 21st century, it would be a sacrilege to let it be ruined by Kanye West.”

Now this jarred me, for one huge reason.

Kanye West, love him or loathe him, is an artist. He makes statements that many of us may not like or understand. Lots of people hate that, and what he represents. Just like lots of people might have hated David Bowie when he did his thing.

I’m not saying that Kanye speaks to me in the way Bowie does, but that doesn’t mean he deserves to be denied the right to share what he creates. If this is the way he wants to remember Bowie, then so be it. No one is going to force these campaign-backers to listen to or enjoy it. And moreover, if it’s possible for your own memories and thoughts of Bowie’s excellent work to be so easily tarnished, then maybe you’re just not a fan of his in the first place?

Will it ‘ruin Bowie forever’? I can’t imagine for a second that anything could.

The day we start censoring musicians and artists because what they produce doesn’t suit our ideals or tastes will be a very sad and desperate day. Surely Bowie wouldn’t be infuriated by the idea of Kanye releasing a tribute to him? In my understanding, he stood for expressionism and creative freedom. I perceived that it was a key part of his ethos and this petition flies in the face of that.

The hip-hop artist, like me, you or the guy that created this miserable petition, saw Bowie as an inspiration. And he has as much right as any of us to remember him in his own way. If this means by creating a tribute album, then so be it.

How dare this campaigner, or any campaigner, say otherwise.