The acquisition now covers all 26 of Bowie’s studio albums, including the posthumous album Toy (released only a few months ago), 2 Tin Machine albums, and whatever portion of royalties was agreed to go to Bowie on any collaborations; such as his 1981 outing with Queen; “Under Pressure”. Back in September, it was revealed that WMC had filed a deal to acquire the rights for all his music from 2000-2016. But now the deal has progressed to include everything from 1968-2000 as well. All in all, the deal covers hundreds of songs both labelled as David Bowie songs or any side projects he undertook from 1968 up to his death in 2016. This leaves a small cache of recordings that WMC don’t actually own the rights to, Bowie’s self-titled debut for example.

Chief executive of WMC, Guy Moot, had this to say about the deal, “These are not only extraordinary songs but milestones that have changed the course of modern music forever” adding, “We are looking forward to tending his unparalleled body of songs with passion and care as we strive to build on the legacy of this most extraordinary human being.”

While Bowie is the most recent to have his publishing rights handed away, it may not all be as bad as it immediately seems for the older artists that seem to have hopped on the idea. Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Neil Young and various members of Fleetwood Mac have all handed over their rights for lump sums in the hundreds of millions. This may be down to the dwindling ability to tour, they’re hardly making the millions they did back in the day through streaming, so $300 Million to an 80-year-old Bob Dylan… I understand the appeal.

Maybe the acquisition of these timeless classics to cash-grabbing billion-dollar corporations might end up with your favourite old classic being used in ways that may not necessarily agree with an artist you love. But the good news is, your favourite artist clearly doesn’t care.

Was there life on Mars? @NASAPersevere, set to land today, will search for signs of ancient life and pave the way for future astronauts.

If the rover lands successfully, you’ll hear Yungblud’s cover of Bowie’s classic at the end of the #CountdownToMars: https://t.co/jVwzkuR6j2 pic.twitter.com/riaIIk1ixG

— David Bowie Official (@DavidBowieReal) February 18, 2021

The Perseverance rover was sent out to explore for signs for a shot of habitability on Mars, collect samples and even look for proof of past alien occupants, the mission started in July 2020 and Doncaster’s own Yungblud gained the honour of soundtracking the event after his performance of the cover at last months ‘A David Bowie Celebration: Just for one Day!’. The celebration allows fans to remember Bowie through their favourite artists in a live-streamed concert. To make the event even sweeter is that each ticket sale helped towards the charity Save the Children, a charity that was important to the legendary Ziggy Stardust. You can watch the performance in the video below, as well as the mission itself, with his emotional and charismatic performance any nay-sayer can applaud the young artist on his tribute to The Thin White Duke.

The 23-year-old songwriter and sometime soap actor, once appearing in an Emmerdale episode in 2015, has not just hit the headlines out of this world but has caused quite a stir here on earth since his 2017 debut single ‘King Charles’. The artist’s debut album ‘21st Century Liability’ released on 6th July 2018 went silver and included lead single ‘Medication’ which premiered on the Zane Lowe radio show with Apple Music and was named the day’s World record. Since his rise, Yungblud has released his second studio album ‘Weird!’ in 2020 and has promised his fans the third instalment this year.

Fans will know that this is not Yungblud’s first rodeo covering a track, earlier in the year he performed a cover of Olivia Rodrigo’s track ‘Driver’s License‘ on a radio session. And if his upcoming tour name, Life On Mars Tour, is anything to go by the cover of ‘Life on Mars?’ has truly imprinted on the star’s career. For news concerning the artist’s tour UK tour ‘Occupy the UK’, click here to read more.

Like most young artists, Yungblud has checked Bowie as an inspiration and relates to Bowie’s famous alien alter ego which made him such a mysterious talent. Yungblud spoke to the BBC about his related sense of alienation, ‘“To be honest, all my life I have felt a bit like an alien. Not a lot of people got me, and it got me down when I was younger. I found Bowie and I Found Lady Gaga, and I found Oasis. I found these world-builders, and they literally helped me through. I felt like I belonged on a different planet.“

With such an out of this world playlist choice, who else to send to space then ‘The Man Who Fell To Earth’ himself, it is no mystery why a Bowie track was chosen. And with this type of travel that Ryanair cannot provide becoming more of a reality in our modern world, music fans can now look up at the sky for their favourite songs.

Click here to listen to the David Bowie original.

Yungblud UK/EU Tour dates

01/04/2021 – Foundry – Sheffield
07/07 – Mad Cool Festival 2021 – Madrid, Spain
13/07 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Moscow, Russia
14/07 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Sankt- Petersburg, Russia
26/08 – Reading Festival – Reading
27/08 – Leeds Festival – Leeds
29/08 – Reading Festival – Reading
28/09 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Bournemouth
29/09 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Plymouth
01/10 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – London
04/10 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Bristol
05/10 – O2 Academy Bristol – Bristol
07/10 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Stretford
08/10 – Victoria Warehouse – Manchester
09/10 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Doncaster
12/10 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Newcastle Upon Tyre
14/10 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Birmingham
15/10 – O2 Academy Birmingham – Birmingham
18/10 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Liverpool
21/10 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Paris, France
24/10 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Amsterdam, Netherlands
25/10 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Cologne, Germany
27/10 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Kobenhavn, Denmark
28/10 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Oslo, Norway
29/10 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Trangsund, Sweden
01/11 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Berlin, Germany
02/11 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Hamburg, Germany
04/11 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Hlavni Mesto Praha – Czechia
05/11 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Wien, Austria
09/11 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Munich, Germany
10/11 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Esch-sur-alzette, Luxembourg
12/11 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Zurich, Switzerland
13/11 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Milan, Italy
15/11 – LIFE ON MARS TOUR – Barcelona, Spain