David Bowie’s Funeral Honors Death Bed Wish: Singer ‘Secretly Cremated In America’
David Bowie’s funeral will apparently never happen, based upon the newest reports. The singer apparently told his wife, Iman Abdulmajid, and family on his death bed that he did not wish to have any special ceremony, public memorial, or funeral procession held upon his demise. Instead, the Starman wished the entire matter to be kept completely private, which would be similar to how he kept his entire cancer battle secret from the world.
A New York City source has told the Daily Mirror that the family had David Bowie cremated on Sunday after the rocker expressed the desire to be buried “without any fuss.” The source claims, “There is no public or private service or a public memorial. There is nothing.” British fans had hoped there might be a public funeral held in the United Kingdom, but it should be expected that memorial events will be held across the pond.
The report claims Bowie’s cremation was a “direct cremation,” which meant Bowie’s body was collected from his Manhattan apartment and transferred to the crematory “without a formal viewing, visitation, or ceremony.” The low-cost solution costs less than $1,000, and the deceased is quickly cremated after the paperwork is filled out by the family.
On Facebook, Bowie’s family also posted a message stating that they planned a private memorial.
“The family of David Bowie is currently making arrangements for a private ceremony celebrating the memory of their beloved husband, father and friend. They ask once again that their privacy be respected at this most sensitive of times,” the statement read.
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The rock star apparently made his wishes very clear during the last 18 months as he battled liver cancer. The U.S. source said Bowie wanted to be remember for his music, with the Blackstar album being his final gift to the world.
“In many respects you don’t need a memorial or service to remember David by…you have his music instead,” the source said. “Bowie’s fans had been hoping for some sort of public funeral. He would have wanted to just disappear with no fuss, no big show, no fan-fare. This would totally be his style. His last album Blackstar was very much his goodbye to fans instead.”
Although this report comes from an unnamed source, it fits in with the Facebook post by Bowie’s producer, Tony Visconti, who claimed the artist wanted the public focused on his art, not his death.
“He always did what he wanted to do. And he wanted to do it his way and he wanted to do it the best way,” he said. “His death was no different from his life — a work of art. He made Blackstar for us, his parting gift.”
“The unexpected death of David Bowie has turned this tribute, which we have worked on for the past seven months, into a memorial concert,” the organizers wrote on the concert’s website. “This year’s concert will certainly be remembered as a poignant celebration of his music by his friends, peers, and fans. We are all deeply saddened by this news. The timing of our public on-sale date is bizarre in its timing … may God’s love be with you.”
[Photo by Jo Hale/Getty Images]
