There isn’t much that can make people raise their eyebrows these days, but every now and then something stops us all collectively in our tracks. Today’s thing? A bold claim from pop star and actor Janelle Monáe in their Rolling StoneMusicians on Musicians interview with Boygenius’ Lucy Dacus.
Monáe and Dacus were discussing how Halloween is such a special time of year because it allows people to transform, which is something Monáe really tries to weave into her world-building music. And that’s when she dropped a bit of a bomb on Dacus.
Related: We’re Here & We’re Queer—125 of the Best Pride Caption Ideas for Pride Month and Beyond
“I think when I saw David Bowie,” Monáe began, while Dacus interrupted earnestly, “You saw him?” It’s a fair question: Bowie died in 2016, and his final performance was in 2006 when he sang with Alicia Keys at a charity event in New York. Expecting her to name a performance sometime around then, she got a less expected answer.
“I did,” Monáe claimed. “I traveled back into the 1970s and I saw him do Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars, and it was incredible.”
Dacus appeared visibly confused by Monáe and asked, “You traveled back…?”
“Yes, I was backstage and I was like, ‘This is what I want to do,’” Monáe said. “So I jetted back to the 2000s and I was like, ‘I can have the musical, make the music, create the lyrics, and create community around transformation and being queer.’ And not even just in sexuality, in how we see the world.”
People historically credit Bowie’s alter ego Ziggy Stardust as one of the first accepted pop culture displays of gender fluidity, bisexuality, and sexual exploration.
Related: David Bowie’s Band Mourns Beloved Teammate From ‘Ziggy Stardust’ Days
People were taken aback by her confession and ultimately weren’t able to determine if she was joking or not.
“Very thankful I was not put in the situation Lucy Dacus is in here,” said one viewer.
“If anyone can do it, it’s Janelle Monáe,” validated another.
“Was not expecting time travel to be confirmed by Janelle Monáe in a Rolling Stone interview. But this seems about right,” affirmed another.
She went on to reveal that “I absolutely feel my DNA in the future.” She continued, “Cindi [Mayweather] is that,” referring to her android alter ego that appeared in her 2010 album The ArchAndroid. “And we are helping each other.”
We may not understand it, but there is no denying that artists like Dacus and Monáe are extremely talented people, and whatever gives us great music without harming anyone seems like a good deal to me.
This story was originally reported by Parade on Oct 21, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.yahoo.com ’
