The music icon reportedly told his loved ones he wanted to “go without any fuss” and not have a funeral service or public memorial.

The 69-year-old David Bowie, who died of liver cancer on Sunday, had been secretly cremated in America without friends or family present after the star told loved ones he did not want a funeral. The family statement on Thursday, titled "Thank you", said:

"The family of David Bowie is currently making arrangements for a private ceremony celebrating the memory of their beloved husband, father and friend.” And further reads in the later part, “However, it is important to note that while the concerts and tributes planned for the coming weeks are all welcome, none are official memorials organized or endorsed by the family. Just as each and every one of us found something unique in David's music, we welcome everyone's celebration of his life as they see fit."

Bowie incidentally died just two days after his last album entitled Blackstar was released and fans speculated that this served as an epitaph he had written himself. About a week before he died on January 10, Bowie called Visconti to say he wanted to make a final album. He had apparently written and demoed five new songs. "I was thrilled," said the producer, who worked on key Bowie albums including The Man Who Sold the World, Low and 2013's surprise comeback The Next Day. Visconti will be one of the musicians performing at a memorial concert for Bowie at New York's Carnegie Hall in March. The Music of David Bowie had originally been billed as a tribute show, with artists including Cyndi Lauper and The Roots also performing, but the event will now give fans the opportunity to mourn.

On a lighter note, Blackstar is now on its way to become Bowie's first number one album in the US; as sales surged after news of his death broke out.

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