Get ready to dive into the world of music's most eccentric and unconventional artists! We're exploring the wildest, most bizarre musicians who defied norms, pushed boundaries, and left an indelible mark on music history with their unique personalities and extraordinary talents.
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00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're looking at the most erratic and unconventional musicians
00:11of all time.
00:19Number 10.
00:20Bjork.
00:21Bjork is easily Iceland's most famous musician.
00:32She first rose to prominence in the 1980s as the lead singer of the Sugar Cubes, before
00:37achieving even greater success as a solo artist.
00:41Her music, known for its highly experimental and innovative edge, became increasingly eccentric
00:47over her first three albums, and has remained consistently quirky.
00:54Bjork's peculiarities extend beyond her music.
01:01Her arts, videos, and fashion all stand out for their surreal aesthetic.
01:06Perhaps one of her most iconic looks was the swan dress she wore to the 2001 Oscars, which
01:12the Telegraph hailed as one of the most iconic red carpet looks.
01:17Bjork's fearless embrace of her peculiarity has made her a musical giant, inspiring countless
01:22fans globally with her unique vision.
01:33Number 9.
01:35Captain Beefheart's.
01:36Captain Beefheart's most iconic work, Troutmask Replica, produced by Frank Zappa and performed
01:42with his magic band, is as much a hot mess as it is a meticulously crafted masterpiece.
01:54Beefheart wrote every song on piano in nine hours, despite having never played the instrument
02:00before.
02:01Each instrumental part was transcribed, and the musicians played them as perfectly as
02:06However, the recording process was grueling.
02:16At one point, the drummer was pushed down a flight of stairs for failing to play a strawberry.
02:21None of the parts were in sync, and Beefheart recorded vocals without hearing the instrumentals,
02:26resulting in music's most carefully composed mess.
02:36And that's just the tip of the iceberg.
02:38The full story is too long to recount here.
02:42Number 8.
02:43Ozzy Osbourne.
02:44It's no exaggeration to claim that Black Sabbath and their frontman, the Prince of
02:49Darkness, Ozzy Osbourne, pioneered heavy metal.
02:56Since the band's monumental debut in 1970, Osbourne has gone on to become one of music's
03:01most significant and bizarre figures.
03:05There's an abundance of wacky stories surrounding the singer, like the infamous 1982 incident
03:10when he bit the head off of a bat on stage.
03:13A year earlier, a dove suffered a similar fate at his hands, reflecting his history
03:18of shocking acts involving animals.
03:26This behaviour may trace back to his time working in a slaughterhouse, which likely
03:31desensitised him to animal cruelty.
03:33Another crazy story involved accidentally drugging a vicar after his wife unknowingly
03:38gave him a spacey kick.
03:48Number 7.
03:49Sun Ra.
03:55Claiming to be a messiah sent from Saturn by cosmic beings to speak through music is
04:01quite a curious backstory for a musician, and is one of many reasons Sun Ra is considered
04:07so eccentric.
04:20During his life, he composed more than a hundred full-length experimental jazz albums.
04:25His music was unlike anything on Earth, creating sounds he believed aligned with the cosmos's
04:31vibrations.
04:37Sun Ra pioneered Afrofuturism, an aesthetic combining African culture with science fiction.
04:44He rejected his given name, racial identity, and Earthly constraints and embraced an otherworldly
04:50persona as an act of liberation.
04:53Although he passed away in 1993, his legacy endures, and his music will continue to inspire
04:58many for decades.
05:07Number 6.
05:08Yoko Ono.
05:28Yoko is one of music's most polarizing figures, considered a misunderstood genius by some
05:39and despised by others.
05:41Contrary to popular belief, she didn't break up the Beatles, although she has made many
05:46questionable art choices, like putting John Lennon's bloodied glasses on an album cover.
05:59Much of the hostility she faces stems from racism and misogyny, but despite individual
06:04opinions of her, everyone agrees she's pretty peculiar.
06:08Ono is famous for her avant-garde scream, used as a way to express feelings words fail
06:13to convey.
06:14However, not everyone appreciates it.
06:17For example, she belted her lungs out while performing with Chuck Berry once, which was
06:21so out of place that the sound engineer muted her completely.
06:34Number 5.
06:35Michael Jackson.
06:42Rising to fame as one of the Jackson 5, the King of Pop became the most famous person
06:47in the world at the peak of his career.
06:50His eccentricity was a result of his unique and tragic upbringing, along with the isolation
06:55caused by his stardom.
07:01He had a childlike love for toys, cartoons, and animals, stemming from a desire to recapture
07:06the childhood he never had.
07:08This longing was reflected in his private amusement park, Neverland Ranch, where his
07:13moonwalking pet chimpanzee Bubbles lived.
07:16Known for his peculiar purchases, Jackson reportedly attempted to buy the elephant man's
07:21bones for $1 million, but his bid was rejected.
07:25His uniqueness as an artist has solidified him as one of music history's most fascinating
07:30figures.
07:40Number 4.
07:41Prince.
07:42Prince was a musician, performer, and cultural icon who cultivated an unconventional image
07:48that still stands out.
07:56A music prodigy, he seamlessly blended a multitude of genres and mastered several instruments.
08:02Prince was a Jehovah's Witness, which meant he would have gone knocking on strangers doors,
08:07enlightening them about his faith.
08:18He took this work seriously, one time knocking on a Jewish household's door and insisting
08:24on finishing his message despite their disinterest.
08:27He also didn't believe in time, refusing to count his age.
08:35In 1993, he created Glam Slam Ulysses, a funk-infused adaptation of Homer's epic.
08:42Prince was an icon who truly lived life on his own terms, which is something we can all
08:48look up to.
08:52Number 3.
08:54Frank Zappa In his own words, Frank Zappa never set out
08:58to be weird.
08:59It was always other people who called him weird.
09:07Zappa was a renowned band leader, guitarist, and composer who rejected norms and embraced
09:13unconventionality.
09:15One of his first TV appearances featured him showing how to play a bicycle, foreshadowing
09:19his unusual career.
09:28Zappa despised apathy and encouraged his fans to vote by putting registration booths at
09:33live shows.
09:35He also upheld artists' rights when in 1985, he testified at Congress in opposition to
09:40a proposed censorship law.
09:50During his monumental speech, he famously said, and contributed to blocking the passage
09:57of the bill.
09:58Decades after his death, he's still considered one of music's most innovative stars.
10:11Number 2.
10:12David Bowie One of the most celebrated musicians of all
10:14time, David Bowie constantly displayed boundary-pushing levels of creativity.
10:27His eccentricity was a fundamental part of his artistic identity, with an unparalleled
10:32ability to constantly reinvent his image.
10:35From Ziggy Stardust to the Thin White Duke, he constantly transformed stylistically.
10:47There are countless stories highlighting Bowie's oddities, like the fact that he kept urine
10:52in his fridge to protect it from witches.
10:55Another is that while recording Station to Station, his diet was primarily peppers, milk,
11:01and narcotics.
11:07Bowie frequently challenged the industry's standards, which has become an essential part
11:12of his lasting legacy.
11:30Number 1.
11:31Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Many struggle to understand how innovative
11:39Mozart was, with his music being over 200 years old now.
11:44During his life, many of his works were groundbreaking and also controversial.
11:56He was a peculiar person by the standards of any period.
11:59For instance, he once proposed to Aloysia Weber, who later gave him the cold shoulder.
12:04Outraged, he played a revenge tune, essentially telling her to kiss his behind.
12:16He later married her sister, whom he controlled obsessively, banning her from walking alone,
12:22going to casinos, and even restricting her bath time, out of fear that she'd drown.
12:38Mozart was rebellious for the era, and will forever be remembered as one of history's
12:43most original composers.
12:45Who do you think takes the cake for being the oddest musician of all time?
12:49Let us know in the comment section.
13:20Don't forget to like and subscribe!