David Bowie I'm Afraid Of Americans

[@carlnilssonyoung8961]

After 20 years, Once again Bowie proves he is ahead of time.

[@john-stringham]

Guess Trent Reznor wanted Bowie's autograph real bad, huh.

[@davidcopson5800]

He'd only sign it as Gary Oldman if Trent pressed him.

[@greenbluemonkey]

lol

[@stereophonicsmom]

Instead he got sober 💜

[@adrianneferguson1919]

Still poignant 20+ years later, such a great song.

[@anabellelei8540]

THat was a welcome sight.

[@yvetteadshead4212]

David Bowie was so cool

[@LadyHeathen82]

David Bowie and Trent Reznor from Nine Inch Nails...This video always gave me a gothgasm ❤️

[@ivanfinch9875]

Always years ahead of his time. RIP Starman

[@sirluke7]

This song definitely has the feel of Peter Gabriel... especially at the beginning ... Check out Gabriel's version of Bowie's "Heros" ... Never liked Bowie as a teen.. But taking his whole body of work.. WOW what a talent. Loved his last album.

[@royaltracy1598]

Can we just take a moment and appreciate the way that outfit is snapping on David?

[@MRM-Wendy]

I read a article that Trent Razor. ( edit spell name wrong its Reznor..i always spell his name wrong..lol) was real bad on drugs during making of this video. Bowie told him he could get clean if he tried hard enough. Few yrs later Trent hit rock bottom, got clean. Went see Bowie at a concert. Trent walked in the room where Bowie was..he told Trent " i knew you get clean. " trent said Bowie was a great influence on him. They kept a close friendship up to Bowies death.

[@LadyHeathen82]

Wendy Pritchard Iwas hoping somebody would tell that story. DB knows all too well about drugs.

[@MRM-Wendy]

@@LadyHeathen82 yes he did. That story touched me. And when i saw this i had to tell MRM about it. Mr Bowie knew Trent would get clean. Even though Trent didnt know he would. It was the sweetest story, im not ashamed to say i cried when i read it. Thank you for your response!!

[@LadyHeathen82]

Wendy Pritchard 👋

[@MRM-Wendy]

*Reznar not Razor..lol. I always spell his name wrong

[@samuelbrown7831]

That's the power of Bowie. Totally prophetic

[@zachariahlloyd6043]

Man, *Trent* looked pretty ruff here, I might have been a little concerned too, & I am an *American!!*

[@caralayne503]

You can always tell a Trent Reznor song by his production & I love love Bowie. This was filmed near my street, which is where Bowie lived in NYC.. this is just a good song, i love them both!! 🖤🤘

[@rliptak2]

This song is so relevant right now. Talk about some visionary stuff.

[@stalwartnerd]

A weird coincidence is that stuff stated going down the tubes when Bowie died

[@KarmasAbutch]

The Stiggy Stardust I’ve always said it felt like being told that God had dies and we’d be on our own from now on... still waiting to be wrong about that. 😔

[@delmar418]

David, has always been way ahead of his time.

[@gabsonmars]

Bowie was always ahead of his time, this song is still so relevant probably will only become more relevant as time goes on.

[@debieee]

Shoot, I'm afraid of myself sometimes :) Never heard this song but I like it

[@lightlantern]

Bowie & Trent Had This Magical Fire Together!!!

[@noelcampbell6517]

You are so on the ball this song is so so relevant for today.. Great song

[@narlycat]

Maybe he was afraid of Jesus of Nashville?

[@ashleydixon4613]

Can’t believe Bowie was 50 when this came out! Love these two together.

[@andrear1751]

I've always liked this song, and Bowie and Reznor. It seems that a lot of people take the song to literally mean that Bowie is afraid of Americans. For me, it's obvious by the lyrics that the song is meant to be ironic, how he basically saying that people are too hung up on their preconceived ideas, and getting paranoid. The song is about showing how believing stereotypes can lead to paranoia; and paranoia can make your mind play tricks on you and affect your rational thinking.

[@larindanomikos]

That's your interpretation. Art is subjective. There is no "right" interpretation. I don't see the song the way you do at all. But we're both right.

[@MRM-Wendy]

Of course i love this song. I love Bowie and Nine Inch Nails.

[@kurtjk01]

Um. Reznor. But, yes; never enough Bowie in the world. And he is now a non-renewable resource. As to the song and video: It is clearly how those who have no idea about the U.S . feel about the U.S. He perceives a shot-up cab; but that's not the reality. Americans aren't that dangerous on a day to day basis, in reality. He chose to live in New York, after all -- and honored his local firefighting ladder when performing the opening for the Concert for New York -- and made the American country his own. He really loved us, and we loved him.

[@Destructionaire]

The sound production for when this track was made.... epic.

[@NicoleMacintyre52]

Omg David and Tina Turner ! Went they sing (tonight )my heart melts 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻❤️

[@chiefwahoo7880]

Glad someone reacted to this, lyrics and imagery is relevant today.

[@fionatsang9353]

Try 'Valentine's Day' from Bowie's far more recent album The Next Day. Same theme but he came at it in a different way, still just as extremely relevant.

[@bobwait3629]

Used as the theme song for the terrific show Berlin Station.

[@adambowles3131]

Rip david bowie 😇

[@taylemgames2652]

Bowie said himself this song was about the hysteria around the stereotypical fear and typing. He wasn't actually saying he is afraid of Americans or they are a gun-crazed violent society.

[@personman1148]

Exactly i see so many people in the comments doing this exact thing and using this song to stereotype Americans as violent gun toting narcissists.

[@westleyjohnstone4719]

So many bowie classics. Modern love, absolute beginner's, heroes, changes to name a few. Take your pick 👍

[@leonline3424]

Great song for these times!!

[@robertreichle1]

Love this, but I think the album mix is way better that this update.

[@davidfisher8821]

Great song, great reaction! You should listen/watch Bowie’s The Heart’s Filthy Lesson....it would be a perfect follow up!

[@pennyj777]

Yes! Love that song. That whole album is amazing.

[@johncaesar7761]

So true. God is an American. All else shall be judged!🤔🙄

[@Living_Dead_Girrl]

This reaction aged like milk. Yeah, uh, I lost MY DAD to COVID, and nearly died myself - but go ahead, compare _wearing a mask_ to being persecuted. And it’s Reznor* (not “Razer”) and Bowie is pronounced like the word “bow” (like rain-bow, hair-bow) with a “wee” at the end. SMH.

[@ShawnKavanagh]

David was just so cool

[@MrTrevisco]

Forget just Americans, I'm more afraid of humanity.

[@BeautyandGoreGalore]

Trevor Hiscox I think that’s why the second line of the chorus is “I’m afraid of the world”

[@Terri6868]

Love Bowie💜 you’ve done 2 Bowie videos this month.👍 All of us that love classic rock have to listen to hip hop, & different kinds of todays music. I don’t like & don’t understand. I try not to say anything about it. I try to give it a chance. The people that like hip hop etc can at least let us have alittle of the music that I love. I’m done with my rant. 🤬

[@johncaesar7761]

These gentlemen knew where the US was going years ago. There needs to be separation of church and state. Especially when people like evangelicals have a say about the way the country is run. I hope the best for you all, we have lots of room for you here.😉🤗🇨🇦

[@SylviaPennylaneRobles]

This is def and epic song and you so right! It will always be relevent, and when he says God is an american is how people feel about themselves since everyone has forgotten pretty much Take God out of the scope and replace themselves as such, really a very interesting song.. RIP David

[@adamsgrad93]

This song was written in 1997. It's still sadly relevant.

[@mahavishnustravinskij]

It's so interesting,´trying to place his character in a current setting. He could be "the outsider", the minority(really cis, white men are the opposite but... whatevs), the one put in a position to fear police, to fear other people because of their(the system's) violence. Or he could be the Karen, running from everything, feeling targeted when he's really not. Being afraid because of his own prejudice. But it feels more like the first than the latter, a lot because of the anti-nationalist, kind of atheist to the country("god is an american")- attitude, in so clear opposition to gun violence.

[@BrandonGerman24]

I loved the vid, but don't think I didn't see and hear the subtle audio adjustment at around 2:05 to 2:09 ish? LOL SUBBED

[@jenniferzahnow5898]

You should listen to “Lazarus” from Bowie... I keep telling you to listen!!! His final song.

[@kylemorris1484]

Its "Reznor" you knob

[@qualityserviceexperts9996]

The dude who plays the priest was the director of this video and the filming took place in Lower Manhattan - mostly looks exactly the same as it did when filming! But hey, you want Real Relevance? Check this remake out: kzbin.info/www/bejne/n16ulIelbbNssJY

[@marcomaccari1429]

Beautiful rock industrial

[@talkingoutloud9694]

So, while I suppose there are many ways a person could take this song (and I wish it was just that David Bowie is magical and psychic, and knew it could easily pertain to how so many ppl who follow Faux-chi and MSM are terrified of Americans being virus vectors over human beings, obviously that's not what he was singing about, tho, there is somewhat of a similar mentality going on). America's unawareness of anything besides their own little piece of America + not being able to go without thinking of anything but consumption of goods and even potential consumption of ppl (how he talks ab Johnny and wanting women and p*ssy, the same way he wants to suck on a coke. Basically, Americans have dehumanized each other to be whatever they can get out of each other. AND (at least for the last several decades) the rest of the world has kind of been colonized by corporations, especially fast food and we export loneliness/narcissism + instant gratification and using whatever or whoever just for our own wants. American culture has spread all over the world and it's crazy how so much of the earth can not only speak English bc of the US, but many Americans are only concerned w learning their own language, laughing at mistakes ppl where English is their 4th or 5th language is normal when we don't bother learning enough to even get around a weekend on vacation. We just expect people to speak English. Everywhere. At any time we need them to! The family, communities, even religion that bring ppl together in other areas are no longer bringing Americans together. Ppl actually choose to be alone and be lazy and consume over create (unless it's money maybe or cheap goods) and this has spread across the world. I don't know his whole reasoning, but Bowie himself said he thought of the chorus when in Java seeing that even they had McDonald's and from his travels where the worst parts of American culture are being sold to youth in other countries. I don't think he really hated American ppl tho or meant it to such an extreme as my answer might have sounded tho

[@johnnosiennek7066]

It seemed to have a Peter Gabriel feel to it IMHO

[@danusmc3]

Always loved this song, but never quite understood the "God is an American" part.

[@davidvornsand6054]

Daniel , Hello, I’ve listened to Bowie since1969 and still some lyrics are questionable. However I think “God is an American “ refers to the arrogance perceived by the rest of the world that we sometimes justify our actions by our faith in God. Scary!

[@robertreichle1]

@@davidvornsand6054 Of course. God created America to rule over all other countries and be the shiny bestest thing in the world that can do no wrong. :)

[@danusmc3]

@@davidvornsand6054 I can kind of see that. But that's a really broad assumption. Just kind of weird to make a "religious statement" in a song that was more about embracing violence in this nation Meh....

[@anabellelei8540]

@@davidvornsand6054 Started to go there but didn't, glad you did it for me!

[@cablebrain9691]

@@davidvornsand6054 Yes, it is scary that people would perceive Americans that way. From Wikipedia: Bowie describes the feelings behind the song: "It's not as truly hostile about Americans as say "Born in the U.S.A.": it's merely sardonic. I was traveling in Java when [its] first McDonald's went up: it was like, "for fuck's sake." The invasion by any homogenized culture is so depressing, the erection of another Disney World in, say, Umbria, Italy, more so. It strangles the indigenous culture and narrows expression of life." So I guess that maybe he's talking about Americans' influence upon other cultures in a way that diminishes there own?? I don't know. It doesn't seem to me that Bowie's video is really a reflection of the true meaning of the song. I think he just took artistic license with that. Keep in mind that he also says that Johnny is afraid of the world. In the end, I think the song is just abstract/impressionist art. After all, Bowie chose to live in America.

[@jeffbrown5084]

It’s not about masks, it’s about Americans being ultra violent gun nuts. You’ve got it WAY wrong.

[@cablebrain9691]

Apparently Bowie's song did not reflect his own opinion of America, but more a view created by media. This is supported by the fact that he lived in America for much of his adult life, eventually passing-away in New York City, where he was residing. The death rate for the "C" word per capita in The USA is less than it is for eight major European countries, which are.... Belgium, Spain, Italy, The UK, France, Sweden, The Netherlands, & Ireland. Although that's not much consolation for me, as I live in a "hot zone". So I guess I'm afraid of everyone. ; )

[@davidvornsand6054]

Every time I shop at the Haitian market everyone stares at me because I happen to be white. I know what you are saying, every Black person knows what I’m saying. But once they got used to me everything is great! Maybe you just have to fit in to fit in, I love my Haitian market!

[@agresticumbra]

There’s been a noticeable drop in foreign exchange students coming here. My SIL, who is from Dublin, says that fewer Irish are visiting the US because of what’s been in the news over recent years. Our image to the rest of the world has changed. That vid is fairly real in regards to those things.

[@cablebrain9691]

This article (link below) seems to be in direct opposition to your assertion: "WASHINGTON, D.C., November 18, 2019-The number of international students in the United States set an all-time high in the 2018/19 academic year, the fourth consecutive year with more than one million international students. The total number of international students, 1,095,299, is a 0.05 percent increase over last year, according to the 2019 Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange. International students make up 5.5 percent of the total U.S. higher education population." www.iie.org/Why-IIE/Announcements/2019/11/Number-of-International-Students-in-the-United-States-Hits-All-Time-High

[@LovelyDay11]

goatnad6970 Why so offended? It’s a fact Americans are not popular in the world.

[@stevegibbons8941]

Youve hit the nail on the head, Bowie was always ahead of the game - weird but good, great vid great reaction !!!

[@Douglas.Scott.McCarron]

The worse part is as an American from the USA I find this amusing.

[@stephentaylor8339]

Love this song and video but I prefer the album version a lot more.

[@luizaksnes.8374]

Great video. You should listen to Little Wonder by Bowie.

[@davidcopson5800]

That's great. Now get your microphone tightened up and do 'We Prick You' from Outside.

[@BrianKapellusch]

I always hear "johnny's in America. Wu-tang's at the wheel."

[@splattered63]

Much prefer mid 70s Bowie - Young American

[@davidcopson5800]

Ain't there one damn song from his later work that can make you break down and cry?

[@CA-tz2sg]

Love this....love you! You are making me believe in American people again!

[@charcolew]

Great song about what a violent place the USA is, not just the guns but also the culture. That feeling of permanent threat when you're on the streets, that fear and paranoia. No thanks.

[@personman1148]

I look at it as him speaking about the irrational stereotype people put on Americans. Every time he looks away it cuts to the people going about normal things wondering why he's acting the way he is.

[@dennisanderson7034]

For the time that this was released, the symbolisms reverberate to right now! It wasn't masked then and it's been completely unmasked since this video was released.

[@williecoulter1091]

Paranoid much but I kind of like it, and you are scary Ty. 😉😖😲👀

[@hightie1]

Yea I love David Bowie. A song I would like you to react to is This is not America by DB. My hopes are low though, but you really need to hear this one Harri from Salvation Army Halmstad Sweden kzbin.info/www/bejne/q5PGZKJogL90atk

[@andrewfletcher8858]

Unrealistic fear of Americans being hyper violent. Trent is a genius and despite his Ego he's always been on point. Even Johnny Cash was impressed.

[@imano8265]

Yeah. "America first" and "I can`t breath"

[@kevindobson3701]

Can you please react to David bowie song called The stars are out tonight

[@brendawoodson3230]

Always fiund this song very profound because Americans think God sanctions everything they do in the world no matter what Anerica does it's right

[@cablebrain9691]

What a ridiculous statement. Apparently YOU think that you know what everyone else thinks. It must be cool to be able to read minds.

[@personman1148]

I took the song as making a statement about people's unrealistic fear of Americans stereotyping them as violent people who just want to shoot everything. When if you look at the song the second he looks away the person he was looking at went back to doing normal things because all the violence he was in them in reality wasn't there.

[@elvisaustin9553]

This song had a great beat to it. But before the big c some people hated Americans anyway. I would add it to my playlist.

[@caesar1368]

I'm sorry to see your reaction to "God is an American" was the biggest throughout your reaction. There is a bigger message here brother.

[@marypulley6512]

That makes no sense to me, the words, nor the music.

[@cablebrain9691]

Think of it as a Picasso painting.

[@MrRoach-yo3mz]

Bowie Was Way Over Rated

[@johnnosiennek7066]

Each to there own !

[@davidcopson5800]

Only by you and six other people.

[@bigguy1164]

All of you turbo boomers are thick as fuck. " It's not as truly hostile about Americans as say "Born in the U.S.A.": it's merely sardonic. I was traveling in Java when [its] first McDonald's went up: it was like, "for fuck's sake." The invasion by any homogenized culture is so depressing, the erection of another Disney World in, say, Umbria, Italy, more so. It strangles the indigenous culture and narrows expression of life." - Bowie, explaining the song to you mouth breathers.

[@streetstroller]

There's a strong correlation between brain damage and people who Capitalize Every Word In Their Sentences.