Bob Dylan reshaped popular music with his poetic lyrics and unique voice. He evolved from a folk protest singer into a rock and roll icon. Furthermore, he remains an elusive figure who constantly changes his public persona. Consequently, his career spans six decades of mystery and reinvention. Explore these fascinating details about the Nobel laureate.
Bob Dylan
He was born Robert Zimmerman in Minnesota. However, he legally changed his name to Bob Dylan later. Reportedly, he chose the new name to honor the poet Dylan Thomas.
Uniquely, he became the first songwriter to win the Nobel Prize for Literature. However, he waited several months before he finally accepted the prestigious award.
Infamously, fans booed him when he played an electric guitar at the Newport Folk Festival. They felt betrayed because he abandoned his acoustic folk roots for rock music.
“Like a Rolling Stone” shattered radio rules with its six-minute runtime. Initially, stations refused to play it. Nevertheless, it became his biggest hit and changed pop radio forever.
Legend says he introduced The Beatles to marijuana in a New York hotel. Apparently, he misheard their lyrics “I can’t hide” as “I get high.”
A mysterious motorcycle crash in 1966 forced him into seclusion. Although the injuries were vague, he used the recovery time to escape the intense pressure of fame.
He won an Oscar for the song “Things Have Changed.” For years, he displayed the golden statue on top of his amplifier during his concerts.
Besides music, he is a prolific and successful painter. Galleries around the world display his “Drawn Blank Series,” which features sketches from his travels.
During high school, the principal cut the microphone during his talent show performance. Simply, his cover of a Little Richard song was too loud and wild for the audience.
He traveled to New York specifically to meet his idol Woody Guthrie. Dutifully, he visited the dying folk singer in the hospital to play songs for him.
Fans call his schedule the “Never Ending Tour.” Remarkably, he has played roughly 100 shows every year since 1988 without taking a significant break.
He dropped out of the University of Minnesota after his freshman year. He told his parents he wanted to move to New York to become a music star.
Bizarrely, he starred in a commercial for Victoria’s Secret. The dark and moody ad featured the folk legend alongside model Adriana Lima.
He managed to keep a second marriage completely secret for years. In fact, the public did not know about his daughter with backup singer Carolyn Dennis until much later.
Finally, he recorded tracks under the pseudonym “Blind Boy Grunt.” He used this fake name to record for a folk magazine while he was still under contract with Columbia.
