Two days after its release , Bowie died of liver cancer ; his illness had not been revealed to the public until then . Co-producer Visconti described the album as Bowie 's intended swan song and a " parting gift " for his fans before his death . Upon release , the album was met with critical acclaim and commercial success , topping charts in a number of countries in the wake of Bowie 's death , and becoming Bowie 's only album to top the '' Billboard '' 200 in the United States . The album remained at the number-one position in the UK charts for three weeks . It was the 5th best selling album of the entire year , worldwide . It was also the best selling album worldwide for two consecutive weeks , having sold more than 969,000 copies as of 31 January 2016 . It has sold more than 1,900,000 copies as of April 2017 and received Gold and Platinum certifications in the U.S and the U.K. , respectively
Bowie died
Death of David Bowie
Blackstar (album)