The hit machine of Hollywood is a lot tougher for the musician than it is for the actor or actress. At least today's big film stars benefit from somebody else writing a hot script for them. More often than not, the musician is writing and producing their own music, and they really are as hot as their last single.
David Bowie and Sting have weathered the roller coaster-like climate of the music industry to enjoy world-renown as male pop-stars. They've had their share of hits and misses but have managed to rebound each time and keep their integrity in check.
But perhaps David Bowie and Sting are products of a different time in the music industry. A time that -- quite frankly -- just doesn't exist anymore. The late 1960's and early 1970's didn't benefit from MTV, MP3 and the internet. It relied on talent. And these two male pop-stars had it in spades.
David Bowie is one of the most popular and oldest male pop-stars in Hollywood. He is also known as a chameleon of popular music.
David Bowie's real name is David Robert Jones. He was born on January of 1947 in Brixton, London. At the age of 6 his family moved to Bromley, Kent. During his childhood, Bowie believed that he would be a great saxophone player; playing along side the piano-pounding Little Richard. Bowie's interest eventually turned to singing, when he filled in for the vocalist of a local group who couldn't make it to a gig. "The King Bees," "The Mannish Boys" and "The Lower Third" - were all groups David Bowie sang with during his early years in the 1960's.
Male pop-star status came early when David Bowie released his album "Space Oddity" in 1969. By this time, David Bowie was going by the name Ziggy Stardust, and his sexuality was the pushing the same bounds as his music. The album was heavy on the acoustic guitar sound, but his next album, entitled "The Man Who Sold the World", was more in tune with the heavy rock sound of the times.
David Bowie continued producing great music, while at the same time acting in several films. He had a string of hits in the 1980's and has continued playing as a solo artist and with a band. His most recent was Tin Machine. This enduring male pop-star has released over 20 albums.
The real name of Sting is Gordon Matthew Sumner. He was born on October of 1951, in the small town of Newcastle, England. Sting had his sights set on becoming a male pop-star since early childhood. He did not graduate from University and after that he attended Northern Counties Teacher Training College. He has a big family, Gordon Matthew Sumner has two sisters (one of them works in British Airways, another one is an artist) and a brother (a pub owner in Newcastle).
One of the most popular male pop-stars, Sting began his musical career in 1977. With his friends. Sting formed the London rock band "The police". This was a successful project, because "The police" won 6 Grammy Awards, the most popular sing was "Every breath you take". If ever there was a band that benefited form MTV it was The Police.
Their first successful solo album was "The dream of the blue turtles"; it was a triple platinum album. Since then Sting has gone on to release a great number of very popular albums. Now Sting juggles his time between producing music and acting.