In January 2016,David Bowie's death shocked the world at large and music lovers in particular. He was an artist who himself inspired a generation of artists – so naturally two of today's most unique stars wanted to pay their own very different tributes to him: Lady Gaga and "Royals" singer Lorde.
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Lady Gaga during her Grammys tribute, left, and Lorde during her homage Photo: Getty Images
At the BRITs on Wednesday night, actor Gary Oldman introduced Lorde as someone who David called "the future of music." She did not disappoint, with an emotional cover of "Life on Mars" backed by David's own band members on stage for a powerful performance, reunited for the first time in 10 years.
WATCH LORDE'S BOWIE TRIBUTE:
Lorde sings Life On Mars in Bowie tribute at BritsLorde performs Life On Mars? in fitting tribute to David Bowie at the BRIT Awards after he called her the "future of music".Was it better than Lady Gaga's Bowie tribute at The GRAMMYs? Tell us what you think below:
Posted by ITV News on Wednesday, February 24, 2016
While Lorde wore a simple black suit for her homage, two weeks earlier Lady Gaga dressed as the icon himself as she teamed up with Intel to put on a spectacular, out-of-the-box performance that started off with a Bowie-themed hologram superimposed on her face.
She then sang a medley of Bowie's most of his iconic hits, including "Space Oddity", "Changes", "Fame" and "Heroes", reeling in the crowd with a flamboyant performance and the help of Nile Rodgers of Chic, the producer behind David's album "Let's Dance", who was on stage alongside her.
WATCH LADY GAGA'S BOWIE TRIBUTE:
While both renditions seemed generally well received, David's son Duncan Jones seems to have his favorite. He famously tweeted after Lady Gaga's performance: "'Overexcited or irrational, typically as a result of infatuation or excessive enthusiasm; mentally confused.' Damn it! What IS that word!?" – a reference to the dictionary definition of 'gaga'. After Lorde's February 24tribute, he re-tweeted a link to the young singer's performance and also noted: "Finally found the links to tonight's Brits. Just... beautiful. Thank you."
(Fans, of course, can decide for themselves.)
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The stage at the BRITs on Wednesday night Photo: Getty Images
What's clear, though, is that the loss of David Bowie affected both Lorde and Lady Gaga greatly. Lady Gaga attributes her career to him, and, in an interview with NPR, she talked about David's "Aladdin Sane" and how it changed her "perspective on everything, forever."
In a Facebook post, Lorde wrote a heartfelt note about David. "I've never met a hero of mine and liked it... David was different. I'll never forget the caressing of our hands as we spoke, or the light in his eyes. That night something changed in me – I felt a calmness grow, a sureness."
Which tribute did you like best? Tweet us what you think at @hellomagus!