He may have been British, but David Bowie’s legacy reaches much further than the United Kingdom alone. Paris’ newest street, Rue David Bowie, is living proof of that. After being first announced in 2020 by Jérôme Coumet, mayor of the 13th arrondissement of Paris, the street name was officially inaugurated on Monday, 8 January. The date wasn’t chosen by chance as it would have been the 77th birthday of the late musician, who died in 2016 after a long battle with cancer.
Born on 8 January 1947 in London, David Bowie took on a professional music career in 1963. Only a couple of years later, in 1965, when the singer was just 18 years old, he made his debut in Paris. Over the years he paid many visits to the city and his album Pin Ups, released in 1973, was recorded not far from the French capital.
In order to pay tribute to Bowie’s lasting impact on music, pop culture and fashion scene, the city of Paris decided to honour him with his own street. “David Bowie did have very strong ties with France”, the city of Paris declared in a statement.
VIDEO: 🇫🇷 Paris names street after rock icon David Bowie
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) January 9, 2024
The French capital has named a street after the British singer, a first in honour of the star eight years after his death. "Rue David Bowie" was officially inaugurated in the 13th district on the left bank of the city pic.twitter.com/JwY47q8g4G
Located between the “Jardin des Plantes” botanical gardens and the National Library, with the modern buildings of “Le Monde” and “L’Obs” just nearby, the newly named street has a prime spot within the Parisian landscape. In the future, Rue David Bowie will connect to a bridge, in its turn connecting the avenue Pierre-Mendes-France and the boulevard de l’Hopital.
On Monday, the inauguration was followed by a concert at the town hall of the arrondissement. The special occasion was attended by, among others, Jérôme Soligny – musician, journalist and biographer of Bowie – and George Underwood, childhood friend of the star. He was also the person responsible for Bowie’s well-known two-coloured eyes, which appeared after an injury that occurred during a battle between the two when they were still children.
As part of the event, a special exhibition is hosted in the town hall of the 13th arrondissement. The expo is free for everyone to visit and will be on display until 13 January. According to the French newspaper Ouest France, it is also the first street in the world named after David Bowie – a spider and an asteroid were the only objects to have been named after him.