A lot of that is because he was very much down and out after trying to maintain pop relevance in the 80s, and then having a comeback after deciding to just start making the music he wanted to. I’ve seen him live a few times in recent years and it’s very clear that he doesn’t take his regained fame for granted and he’s very grateful that he gets to keep doing what he does.
There was a great documentary about him a few years ago- Android in La-La Land,I highly recommend checking it out even if you’re not a fan of his music.
