David Bowie released his last album two days before he died.
David Robert Jones ( 8 January 1947 -- 10 January 2016 ) , known professionally as David Bowie ( [ ˈboʊi ] ) , was an English singer , songwriter and actor . In 2013 , Bowie returned from a decade-long recording hiatus with the release of The Next Day . He remained musically active until he died of liver cancer two days after the release of his final album , Blackstar ( 2016 ) .