--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I do not use the word 'genius' lightly…" description: "\"I do not use the word 'genius' lightly, but if David Bowie is not a genius, then there is no such thing.\" — Mick Rock" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f34/mick-rock-37805_bowie_i-do-not-use-the-word-genius-lightly-but_121014.jpg" --- # I do not use the word 'genius' lightly, but if David Bowie… ![“I do not use the word 'genius' lightly, but if David Bowie is not a genius, then there is no such thing.” quote by Mick Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f34/mick-rock-37805_bowie_i-do-not-use-the-word-genius-lightly-but_121014.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f34/mick-rock-37805_bowie_i-do-not-use-the-word-genius-lightly-but_121014.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f34/mick-rock-37805_bowie_i-do-not-use-the-word-genius-lightly-but_121014.jpg) > “I do not use the word 'genius' lightly, but if David Bowie is not a genius, then there is no such thing.” [Mick Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-rock/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker argues that true genius is so rare that denying it to David Bowie would make the concept meaningless. **In simple terms:** Bowie's brilliance defines what genius means. Key Takeaway Genius is a unique, undeniable talent. Themes creativity cultural impact talent definition Mood admiring defensive Type celebratory evaluative When to use this quote - debating artistic merit - celebrating innovators - educational curricula on art Key Concepts subjectivity of genius cultural bias Practical Applications - use as a rhetorical device in criticism - highlighting exceptional contributions Questions to Reflect On - What criteria truly define genius? - Can genius be measured objectively? A Different Perspective Genius can be overused as hyperbole, diminishing nuanced appreciation of skill. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Genius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genius/) [Intelligence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intelligence/) ## Related quotes > [ \[David\] Bowie had a genius for continual change himself, reinventing his sound and his image throughout the decades. Each album seemed to find Bowie… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowie/david-bowie-had-a-genius-for-continual-change-himself-reinventing-his/) [David Bowie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowie/) > [The genius thing that we did was, we didn't give up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-z/the-genius-thing-that-we-did-was-we-didn-t-give-up/) [Jay-Z](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-z/) > [“Genius is a thing that happens, not a kind of person.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordan-ellenberg/genius-is-a-thing-that-happens-not-a-kind-of-person/) [Jordan Ellenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordan-ellenberg/) > [Don't worry, be happy. It is the simplest, most complex, genius thing, anyone has ever said.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mac-miller/don-t-worry-be-happy-it-is-the-simplest-most-complex-genius-thing/) [Mac Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mac-miller/) > [The most genius thing about the way I create is to create with other geniuses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kanye-west/the-most-genius-thing-about-the-way-i-create-is-to-create-with-other/) [Kanye West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kanye-west/) > [“(The word “genius” comes from the Latin, and originally referred to a guardian spirit that watched over the birth of each person; it later…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-greene/the-word-genius-comes-from-the-latin-and-originally-referred-to-a/) [Robert Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-greene/) > [I've always said that the word 'genius,' especially in Hollywood, is way overused.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-mcginley/i-ve-always-said-that-the-word-genius-especially-in-hollywood-is-way/) [Ted McGinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-mcginley/) > [ Bob Dylan is one of the very few people in the history of popular music who you can unquestionably apply that word \[genius\] to. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-earle/bob-dylan-is-one-of-the-very-few-people-in-the-history-of-popular/) [Steve Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-earle/) > [If I were to write my title like going through the airport and you have to put down what you do? I would literally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kanye-west/if-i-were-to-write-my-title-like-going-through-the-airport-and-you/) [Kanye West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kanye-west/) > [The word 'genius' isn't applicable in football. A genius is a guy like Norman Einstein.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-word-genius-isn-t-applicable-in-football-a-genius-is-a-guy-like/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“There is no such word as Genius, it is just the combination of hard work and determination.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lyza-matoci-os/there-is-no-such-word-as-genius-it-is-just-the-combination-of-hard/) Lyza Matociños > [The word genius was whispered into my ear, the first thing I ever heard, while I was still mewling in my crib. So it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-welles/the-word-genius-was-whispered-into-my-ear-the-first-thing-i-ever/) [Orson Welles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-welles/) > [It's a miracle that David Bowie, Lou Reed and Iggy Pop are actually still alive today, given how hard they lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-rock/it-s-a-miracle-that-david-bowie-lou-reed-and-iggy-pop-are-actually/) [Mick Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-rock/) > [“Keep your 'lectric eye on me babe Put your ray gun to my head Press your space face close to mine, love Freak out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowie/keep-your-lectric-eye-on-me-babe-put-your-ray-gun-to-my-head-press/) [David Bowie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowie/) > [I was David Bowie-thin up to about 28, and then I discovered food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/i-was-david-bowie-thin-up-to-about-28-and-then-i-discovered-food/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) ## More by Mick Rock > [The true art of being young is knowing how to defy gravity and upset as many people as possible while doing it. How to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-rock/the-true-art-of-being-young-is-knowing-how-to-defy-gravity-and-upset/) [Mick Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-rock/) > [Every morning I stand on my head and do a yoga workout.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-rock/every-morning-i-stand-on-my-head-and-do-a-yoga-workout/) [Mick Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-rock/) > [Somebody had given me a copy of 'Hunky Dory,' which had yet to be a hit, although it was starting to percolate. I'd seen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-rock/somebody-had-given-me-a-copy-of-hunky-dory-which-had-yet-to-be-a-hit/) [Mick Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-rock/) > [My allegiance was always to the act. I wanted them to be happy. I wasn't owned by a magazine or a record label. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-rock/my-allegiance-was-always-to-the-act-i-wanted-them-to-be-happy-i-wasn/) [Mick Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-rock/) > [Newspapers and magazines didn't want pictures of musicians behaving badly back then. Now, because of the Internet, that's all the media wants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-rock/newspapers-and-magazines-didn-t-want-pictures-of-musicians-behaving/) [Mick Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-rock/) > [It's funny because unlike back in the seventies when I made hardly any money, today I could just live off the past if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-rock/it-s-funny-because-unlike-back-in-the-seventies-when-i-made-hardly/) [Mick Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-rock/) > [It's a miracle that David Bowie, Lou Reed and Iggy Pop are actually still alive today, given how hard they lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-rock/it-s-a-miracle-that-david-bowie-lou-reed-and-iggy-pop-are-actually/) [Mick Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-rock/) > [I did not want to be somebody who lived off his reputation. I wanted to continue to be part of the modern music scene.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-rock/i-did-not-want-to-be-somebody-who-lived-off-his-reputation-i-wanted/) [Mick Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-rock/) > [I'd photographed musicians before but this was different. Syd was very charismatic, and he had the aura of a poete maudit, which made him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-rock/i-d-photographed-musicians-before-but-this-was-different-syd-was-very/) [Mick Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-rock/) > [I don't show every picture that I have, I think discretion is also important.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-rock/i-don-t-show-every-picture-that-i-have-i-think-discretion-is-also/) [Mick Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-rock/) > [People think: 'If this photographer's looking like a big jerk-off, maybe it's okay if I do.' I like to catch my subjects off balance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-rock/people-think-if-this-photographer-s-looking-like-a-big-jerk-off-maybe/) [Mick Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-rock/) [Explore all 12 Mick Rock quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-rock/) ## More Bowie quotes > [I was David Bowie-thin up to about 28, and then I discovered food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/i-was-david-bowie-thin-up-to-about-28-and-then-i-discovered-food/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [I gotta friend who spends his life, stabbing my picture with a bowie knife. Dreams of strangling me with a scarf, when my name…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/i-gotta-friend-who-spends-his-life-stabbing-my-picture-with-a-bowie/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [“Keep your 'lectric eye on me babe Put your ray gun to my head Press your space face close to mine, love Freak out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowie/keep-your-lectric-eye-on-me-babe-put-your-ray-gun-to-my-head-press/) [David Bowie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowie/) > [ If I say something about David \[Bowie\], I get 1000 tweets, if I say something about my business just a few! The more personal,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iman-abdulmajid/if-i-say-something-about-david-bowie-i-get-1000-tweets-if-i-say/) [Iman Abdulmajid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iman-abdulmajid/) > [The problem is that the internet IS some kid in a basement with an opinion. The fact that David Bowie and Elton John told…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/page-hamilton/the-problem-is-that-the-internet-is-some-kid-in-a-basement-with-an/) [Page Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/page-hamilton/) > [David Bowie worked with Brian Eno and dressed up in extraordinary clothes, but he was also a brilliant songwriter who captured the thoughts of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bat-for-lashes/david-bowie-worked-with-brian-eno-and-dressed-up-in-extraordinary/) [Bat for Lashes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bat-for-lashes/) > [For Christmas when I was about four I got given 'Can the can' by Susie Quatro, so that was the first record I got.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-fanning/for-christmas-when-i-was-about-four-i-got-given-can-the-can-by-susie/) [Bernard Fanning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-fanning/) > [“The bravest thing David Bowie ever did was to go on stage after Queen at Live Aid.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stewart-stafford/the-bravest-thing-david-bowie-ever-did-was-to-go-on-stage-after-queen/) [Stewart Stafford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stewart-stafford/) > [With the groups who asked me to join them - like the Rolling Stones, Spirit, David Bowie, and Blood, Sweat & Tears - I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shuggie-otis/with-the-groups-who-asked-me-to-join-them-like-the-rolling-stones/) [Shuggie Otis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shuggie-otis/) > [David Bowie always told me how good I smelt. He said to me he had never smelt Chanel smell like that on anybody!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bebe-buell/david-bowie-always-told-me-how-good-i-smelt-he-said-to-me-he-had/) [Bebe Buell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bebe-buell/) > [I am a big David Bowie fan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-wiig/i-am-a-big-david-bowie-fan/) [Kristen Wiig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-wiig/) > [Davy Jones was the grooviest of the Monkees, which makes him one of the grooviest pop stars who ever existed. He was the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-sheffield/davy-jones-was-the-grooviest-of-the-monkees-which-makes-him-one-of/) [Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) > [ Hearing that \[David\] Bowie passed was like you don't really believe it. It's as if the sky shifted a little bit, to remind you… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/babatunde-adebimpe/hearing-that-david-bowie-passed-was-like-you-don-t-really-believe-it/) [Babatunde Adebimpe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/babatunde-adebimpe/) > [It's fun to look at people that are so good at acting that aren't actors, like David Bowie creating a mystique about rock n'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-kilmer/it-s-fun-to-look-at-people-that-are-so-good-at-acting-that-aren-t/) [Val Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-kilmer/) > [Every musician that dies is the greatest ever when they die. I never heard a David Bowie record in my life. But for whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlamagne-tha-god/every-musician-that-dies-is-the-greatest-ever-when-they-die-i-never/) [Charlamagne tha God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlamagne-tha-god/) Browse all 200 Bowie quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I do not use the word 'genius' lightly, but if David Bowie is not a genius, then there is no such thing.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mick Rock" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-rock/i-do-not-use-the-word-genius-lightly-but-if-david-bowie-is-not-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bowie" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-rock/i-do-not-use-the-word-genius-lightly-but-if-david-bowie-is-not-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f34/mick-rock-37805_bowie_i-do-not-use-the-word-genius-lightly-but_121014.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f34/mick-rock-37805_bowie_i-do-not-use-the-word-genius-lightly-but_121014.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f34/mick-rock-37805_bowie_i-do-not-use-the-word-genius-lightly-but_121014.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I do not use the word 'genius' lightly, but if David Bowie is not a genius, then there is no such thing.” — Mick Rock", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Mick Rock", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-rock/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I do not use the word...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-rock/i-do-not-use-the-word-genius-lightly-but-if-david-bowie-is-not-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-rock/i-do-not-use-the-word-genius-lightly-but-if-david-bowie-is-not-a/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```