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112-449: George Michael (born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou ; 25 June 1963 – 25 December 2016) was an English singer-songwriter and record producer. Regarded as a pop culture icon , he is one of the best-selling musicians of all time , with his sales estimated at between 100 million to 125 million records worldwide. Michael was known as a creative force in songwriting, vocal performance, and visual presentation. He achieved 10 number-one songs on

224-400: A physicist whose image and legacy have been represented in comic strips, T-shirts, greeting cards and many other contexts. Often pop icon status implies distinguished association with a societal ideal or archetype . It is not uncommon for iconic figures to have a nickname or sobriquet that is used to emphasize this association. Sometimes the very name of such individuals is even used as

336-608: A "true friend" with whom she had spent "some of the best time of [her] life". In 1992, Michael established a relationship with Anselmo Feleppa, a Brazilian dress designer whom he had met at the Rock in Rio concert in 1991. Six months into their relationship, Feleppa discovered that he was HIV-positive . Michael later said: "It was terrifying news. I thought I could have the disease too. I couldn't go through it with my family because I didn't know how to share it with them – they didn't even know I

448-560: A Child ". The song was a melancholy tribute to his lover, Anselmo Feleppa, who had died in March 1993. The song entered the UK Singles Chart at No. 1 and No. 7 on Billboard upon release in 1996. It was Michael's longest UK Top 40 single, at almost seven minutes long. The exact identity of the song's subject—and the nature of Michael's relationship with Feleppa—was shrouded in innuendo and speculation, as Michael had not confirmed he

560-464: A No. 1 hit in Europe. When Michael appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show on 26 May 2004, to promote the album, he performed "Amazing", along with his classic songs " Father Figure " and " Faith ". On the show, Michael spoke of his arrest, the public revelation of his homosexuality, and his resumption of public performances. He allowed Oprah's crew inside his home outside London. The fourth single taken off

672-578: A coma during a bout with pneumonia, but recovered. He performed his final concert at London's Earls Court in 2012. Michael died of heart disease on Christmas Day in 2016, at his home in Goring-on-Thames , Oxfordshire. George Michael was born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou ( Greek : Γεώργιος Κυριάκος Παναγιώτου ) on 25 June 1963, in East Finchley . He was the only son and the youngest child of three. His father, Kyriacos "Jack" Panayiotou,

784-613: A condition of severing contractual ties with the label. Ladies & Gentlemen was a success, peaking at No. 1 on the UK Albums Chart for eight weeks. It spent over 200 weeks in the UK chart, and is the 45th best-selling album ever in the UK. It is certified seven-times platinum in the UK and multi-platinum in the US, and is Michael's most commercially successful album in his homeland, having sold more than 2.8 million copies. As of 2013,

896-448: A cover of Stevie Wonder's 1972 song, " You and I ", as an MP3 gift to Prince William and Catherine Middleton on the occasion of their wedding on 29 April 2011 . Although the MP3 was released for free download, Michael appealed to those who downloaded the track to make a contribution to "The Prince William & Miss Catherine Middleton Charitable Gift Fund". The Symphonica Tour began at

1008-409: A futuristic virtual reality-related video. The single reached No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart, spending three weeks at the top spot. In the US, "Fastlove" peaked at No. 8. Following "Fastlove", Michael released Older , his third studio album. In the UK, the album was particularly notable for producing a record six top three hit singles in a two-year span. In 1996, Michael was voted Best British Male at

1120-404: A lasting and indelible mark in the area of their career, and then went on to attain a lasting place of recognition in society at large. A common element of pop icon status is the ubiquity of imagery and allusions to the iconic figure. It is common for the figure to be recognized and even celebrated in areas outside the original source of celebrity status. An example of this is Albert Einstein ,

1232-487: A man, and realised that none of those things had been love." In 2004, Michael said, "I used to sleep with women quite a lot in the Wham! days but never felt it could develop into a relationship because I knew that, emotionally, I was a gay man. I didn't want to commit to them, but I was attracted to them. Then I became ashamed that I might be using them. I decided I had to stop, which I did when I began to worry about AIDS, which

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1344-548: A new song and album. Naughty Boy claimed that the song is "amazing but [...] bittersweet". On 7 September 2017 (months after Michael's death), the single " Fantasy ", featuring Nile Rodgers , was released. Having charted at number two upon its release in 1984 (behind Band Aid's " Do They Know It's Christmas? " which Michael also performed in), "Last Christmas" finally reached number-one in the UK Singles Chart on New Year's Day 2021 (chart week ending date 7 January 2021), more than 36 years after its initial release. Andrew Ridgeley said

1456-540: A playful side, others, like "Jesus to a Child," convey deeper emotions. Ultimately, the reviewer commends Michael's successful transformation, awarding the album a 9/10 rating. Older was a huge commercial success, especially in the European markets. In the UK the album debuted at No. 1 with 281,000 copies sold in its first week, becoming one of the biggest debuts ever in British history (it currently ranks as

1568-476: A synonym for common words or ideas. Some fictional characters, such as Mickey Mouse , Bugs Bunny , the Simpsons , Harry Potter , Goku , Sailor Moon , Alice , and Willy Wonka are regarded as pop icons. Even inanimate objects have been recognized as pop icons. Some figures attain transitory or context-specific "pop icon" status for particular events that captivate public attention, such as in

1680-539: A world tour. In Los Angeles, Michael was joined on stage by Aretha Franklin for "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)". It was the second highest grossing event of 1988, earning $ 17.7 million. At the 1988 Brit Awards held at the Royal Albert Hall on 8 February, Michael received the first of his two awards for Best British Male Solo Artist . Later that month, Faith won the Grammy Award for Album of

1792-447: Is trying to emulate ( Gary Barlow ), George Michael nonetheless makes an impressive top 3 entry with this single. The Older album has now proved itself to be far and away his most commercially successful recording ever. Five singles now lifted and every single one has been a top 3 hit. Compare this with the two top 3 hits produced by Faith and Listen Without Prejudice ' s scant total of one top tenner and one single which missed

1904-557: The Billboard 200 the week of 1 June 1996 with 99,000 units sold, the next week it dropped to No. 9 and remained on the chart for 24 weeks, it was certified platinum by the RIAA on 21 August 1996 for shipments of one million units. As of October 2006, it has sold 881,000 copies in the US, according to Nielsen SoundScan . By February 1997, the album is said to have sold 5,000,000 copies worldwide, according to Billboard. Older

2016-573: The Billboard Hot 100 in the US, and No. 28 on the UK Singles Chart. " Mother's Pride " gained significant radio play in the US during the first Persian Gulf War during 1991, often with radio stations mixing in callers' tributes to soldiers with the music. Later in 1991, Michael embarked on the Cover to Cover tour in Japan, England, the US, and Brazil, where he performed at Rock in Rio . The tour

2128-589: The Billboard Hot 100. Michael became the best-selling music artist of 1988 , and Faith was awarded Album of the Year at the 1989 Grammy Awards . Michael's second solo album, Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1 (1990), was also a number one in the UK and yielded the Billboard Hot 100 number one " Praying for Time " and the worldwide hit " Freedom! '90 ". Michael went on to release a series of multimillion-selling albums, including Older (1996), Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best of George Michael (1998), Songs from

2240-471: The Burswood Dome to an audience of 15,000. On 2 March 2011, Michael announced the release of his cover version of New Order 's 1987 hit " True Faith " in aid of the UK charity telethon Comic Relief . Michael appeared on Comic Relief itself, featuring in the first Carpool Karaoke sketch of James Corden , with the pair singing songs while Corden drove around London. On 15 April 2011, Michael released

2352-497: The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert at Wembley Stadium ; in 1993, an EP of Michael's performances with Queen and Lisa Stansfield , entitled Five Live was released, and reached No. 1 in the UK. Older found Michael experimenting with new musical styles and expanding his artistic horizons. Particularly notable was the jazz flavour of the album's sound. The album marked a departure from

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2464-646: The MTV Europe Music Awards and the Brit Awards ; and at the British Academy's Ivor Novello Awards , he was awarded the title of Songwriter of the Year for the third time. Michael performed a concert at Three Mills Studios, London, for MTV Unplugged . It was his first long performance in years, and in the audience was Michael's mother, who died of cancer the following year. Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best of George Michael (1998)

2576-603: The Prague State Opera House on 22 August 2011. In October 2011, Michael was announced as one of the final nominees for the Songwriter's Hall of Fame . In November, he had to cancel the remainder of the tour as he became ill with pneumonia in Vienna, Austria, ultimately slipping into a coma. In February 2012, two months after leaving hospital, Michael made a surprise appearance at the 2012 Brit Awards at

2688-487: The Red Hot AIDS Benefit Series ) and requested to be released from his contract. A bitter legal battle ensued through the courts, ultimately resulting in a loss to Michael. During the court battle, Michael stated that he would refuse to release any new material through Sony under his name should he lose the lawsuit. Whilst essentially holding true to his word, Michael was not completely absent from

2800-594: The Red Hot Organization which raised money for AIDS awareness; a fourth track, "Crazyman Dance", was the B-side of 1992's " Too Funky ". Michael donated the royalties from "Too Funky" to the same cause. "Too Funky" reached No. 4 on the UK Singles Chart and No. 10 on the US Billboard Hot 100. "George Michael was the best. There's a certain note in his voice when he did ' Somebody to Love ' that

2912-690: The UK Albums Chart on 15 November 2019. It also entered the Australian Albums Chart at number seven, the Irish Albums Chart , where it debuted at number 32, climbing to number 26 the following week, and at number 55 on the US Billboard 200 . On 22 June 2022, the documentary film Freedom Uncut was released. Michael had been working on the film shortly before his death, alongside David Austin , and provides

3024-449: The UK Albums Chart , and in the US, the album had 51 non-consecutive weeks in the top 10 of Billboard 200 , including 12 weeks at No. 1. Faith had many successes, with four singles ("Faith", " Father Figure ", " One More Try ", and " Monkey ") reaching No. 1 in the US. Faith was certified Diamond by the RIAA for sales of 10 million copies in the US. To date, global sales of Faith are more than 25 million units. The album

3136-568: The UK Singles Chart and the US Billboard Hot 100 upon its release. For Michael, it became his third consecutive solo number one in the UK from three releases, after 1984's "Careless Whisper" (though the single was actually from the Wham! album Make It Big ) and 1986's " A Different Corner ". The single was also the first Michael had recorded as a solo artist which he had not written himself. The co-writer, Simon Climie ,

3248-615: The Vietnam War . Michael performed the song on numerous TV shows including Top of the Pops and So Graham Norton . His performance of the song on Top of the Pops on 7 March 2003 was his first studio appearance on the programme since 1986. He ran into conflict with the show's producers for an anti-war, anti-Blair T-shirt worn by some members of his band. McLean stated that he was "proud of George Michael for standing up for life and sanity". When Michael's fifth studio album, Patience ,

3360-471: The best-selling single of 1988 in the US. It also reached No. 1 in Australia, and No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart. The video provided some definitive images of the 1980s music industry in the process—Michael in shades, leather jacket, cowboy boots, and Levi's jeans, playing a guitar near a classic-design jukebox. On 30 October, Faith was released in the UK and in several markets worldwide. Faith topped

3472-655: The 2008 finale show of American Idol on 21 May, singing "Praying for Time". When asked what he thought Simon Cowell would say of his performance, he replied "I think he'll probably tell me I shouldn't have done a George Michael song. He's told plenty of people that in the past, so I think that'd be quite funny." On 25 December 2008, Michael released a new Christmas-themed track, " December Song (I Dreamed of Christmas) ", on his website for free. In early 2010, Michael performed his first concerts in Australia since 1988. On 20 February 2010, Michael performed his first show in Perth at

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3584-563: The 23rd fastest-selling album in the UK). At that point, it was Virgin's fastest-selling album of all time; it was later surpassed by the Spice Girls . It became Michael's biggest-selling album in his homeland, achieving over 1.8 million copies sold, and receiving a 6× Platinum certification by the BPI on 5 December 1997. In the UK, it spent a total of 147 weeks inside the top 200, 99 of them on

3696-661: The Days of Our Lives" were recorded at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert. " Killer ", " Papa Was a Rollin' Stone ", and " Calling You " were recorded during his Cover to Cover tour in 1991. All proceeds from the sale of the EP benefited the Mercury Phoenix Trust. Sales of the EP were strong through Europe, where it debuted at No. 1 in the UK and several European countries. Chart success in the US

3808-584: The Executive, with Ridgeley, Ridgeley's brother Paul, Andrew Leaver, Jamie Gould, and David Mortimer (later known as David Austin ). Michael formed the duo Wham! with Andrew Ridgeley in 1981. On the cusp of fame, he decided to legally change his name to the more accessible George Michael. The band's first album Fantastic reached No. 1 in the UK in 1983 and produced a series of top 10 singles including " Young Guns ", " Wham Rap! ", and " Club Tropicana ". Their second album, Make It Big , reached No. 1 on

3920-698: The Last Century (1999), Patience (2004), and Twenty Five (2006). The albums earned him multiple hits such as " Jesus to a Child ", " Fastlove ", " Outside ", " Amazing ", and " An Easier Affair ". Michael came out as gay in 1998, and was an active LGBT rights campaigner and HIV/AIDS charity fundraiser. His personal life, drug use, and legal troubles made headlines following an arrest for public lewdness in 1998 and multiple drug-related offences. The 2005 documentary A Different Story covered his career and personal life. His 25 Live tour spanned three tours from 2006 to 2008. In 2011 Michael fell into

4032-506: The Last Century is a studio album of cover tracks. The album achieved the lowest peak of his solo efforts, peaking at No. 157 on the American Billboard 200 albums chart and at No. 2 in the UK Albums Chart. In 2000, Michael worked on the hit single " If I Told You That " with Whitney Houston . Michael co-produced on the single along with Rodney Jerkins . Michael's first single from his fifth studio album, " Freeek! ", reached

4144-579: The O 2 Arena in London, where he received a standing ovation, and presented Adele the award for Best British Album. In March, Michael announced that he was healthy and that the Symphonica Tour would resume in autumn. The final concert of the tour—which was also the final concert of Michael's life–was performed at London's Earls Court on 17 October 2012. Symphonica was released on 17 March 2014, and became Michael's seventh solo No. 1 album in

4256-537: The Sun Go Down on Me" was released as a single at the end of 1991 and reached No. 1 in both the UK and US. In 1991, Michael released an autobiography through Penguin Books titled Bare , co-written with Tony Parsons . An expected follow-up album, Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 2 , was scrapped due to Michael's lawsuit with Sony . Instead, Michael donated three songs to the charity project Red Hot + Dance , for

4368-465: The Sun Go Down on Me" with Elton John at Live Aid at Wembley Stadium in London on 13 July 1985. He also contributed background vocals to David Cassidy 's 1985 hit "The Last Kiss", as well as Elton John's 1985 successes " Nikita " and " Wrap Her Up ". Michael cited Cassidy as a major career influence and interviewed Cassidy for David Litchfield's Ritz Newspaper . Wham!'s tour of China in April 1985,

4480-651: The Top 10 in the UK. His next single was " Shoot the Dog " which was released in July 2002 during the lead-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq . The video for the song showed Tony Blair as George Bush 's poodle . The single's cover featured the Daily Mirror 's "Howdy Poodle" front page from earlier in the year. Responding to criticism, Michael said, "I am British, I live here, I pay my taxes, and I'm very, very worried that we are now

4592-410: The UK and US, due to its sexually suggestive lyrics. MTV broadcast the video, featuring celebrity make-up artist Kathy Jeung in a basque and suspenders, only during the late night hours. Michael argued that the act was beautiful if the sex was monogamous, and he recorded a brief prologue for the video in which he said: "This song is not about casual sex." One of the racier scenes involved Michael writing

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4704-408: The UK, and ninth overall including his Wham! chart-toppers. The album was produced by Phil Ramone and Michael; the album was Ramone's last production credit. On 2 November 2016, Michael's management team announced that a second documentary on his life, entitled Freedom , was set to be released in March 2017. A month after, English songwriter Naughty Boy confirmed plans to collaborate with Michael, for

4816-423: The US Billboard Hot 100 and 13 number-one songs on the UK Singles Chart . Michael won numerous music awards , including two Grammy Awards , three Brit Awards , twelve Billboard Music Awards , and four MTV Video Music Awards . He was listed among Billboard ' s the "Greatest Hot 100 Artists of All Time" and Rolling Stone ' s the "200 Greatest Singers of All Time". The Radio Academy named him

4928-499: The Wheel" together and also co-wrote and produced "Fastlove". Douglas also played keyboards on those tracks. The album is dedicated to Anselmo Feleppa, Michael´s lover who died from AIDS before the release of the album. Overall, the style of the album was melancholy, dark and sad. Michael complemented this departure making a dramatic change of his clothes, hair style and overall appearance. The long blonde hair, beard and jeans that Michael

5040-713: The Year at the 31st Grammy Awards . At the 1989 MTV Video Music Awards on 6 September in Los Angeles, Michael received the Video Vanguard Award . According to Michael in his film, A Different Story , success did not make him happy and he started to think there was something wrong in being an idol for millions of teenage girls. The whole Faith process (promotion, videos, tour, awards) left him exhausted, lonely and frustrated, and far from his friends and family. In 1990, he told his record company Sony that, for his second album, he did not want to do promotions like

5152-547: The Year from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors . Michael performed on the original 1984 Band Aid recording of " Do They Know It's Christmas? "—he appears third on the song after Paul Young and Boy George sing their lines. The song became the UK Christmas number one and Michael also donated the profits from "Last Christmas" and "Everything She Wants" to charity. Michael sang "Don't Let

5264-531: The album disreputable, Browne criticizes it for being tentative and bland, suggesting that Michael's recent experiences have led to music that resists emotional connection, making the album uniquely honest but joyless. Elysa Gardner's review from Los Angeles Times critiques Michael's pursuit of artistic maturity, suggesting it has led to a decline in the album's quality. She finds many tracks uninspired and lacking emotional depth compared to his earlier work. While "Fast Love" and "Star People" maintain some charm,

5376-424: The album had reached worldwide sales of approximately 15 million copies. The first single of the album, " Outside ", was a humorous song making a reference to his arrest for soliciting a policeman in a public toilet. " As ", his duet with Mary J. Blige , was released as the second single in many territories around the world. Both singles reached the top 5 in the UK Singles Chart . Released in 1999, Songs from

5488-462: The album somewhat stalled and was received with lukewarm success. There (and in Canada), the album release was particularly notable as it was the first album released by the now-defunct DreamWorks Records . Despite leading singles "Jesus to a Child" and "Fastlove" reaching the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100, debut sales for the album were disappointing. The album debuted and peaked at No. 6 on

5600-1112: The album was " Flawless ". It was a dance hit in Europe as well as North America, reaching No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play and becoming Michael's last No. 1 single on the US Dance chart. Twenty Five is Michael's second greatest hits album, celebrating the 25th anniversary of his music career. Released in November 2006 by Sony BMG , it debuted at no. 1 in the UK. During the 2005 Live 8 concert at Hyde Park , London, Michael joined Paul McCartney on stage, harmonising on The Beatles classic " Drive My Car ". In 2006, Michael embarked on his first tour in 15 years, 25 Live . The tour began in Barcelona , Spain, on 23 September and finished in December at Wembley Arena in England. On 9 June 2007, Michael became

5712-487: The album was particularly notable for producing a record six top three hit singles in a two-year span. The high sales of the album prompted a re-issue of the album, titled Older & Upper , eighteen months after the original release. Following the release of Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1 (1990), George Michael accused record label owners Sony Music of failing to promote the album as well as lacklustre support for his charity recordings (particularly contributions to

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5824-427: The album's earnestness and argues that its melodies often fail to make an impact, leading to a lack of engagement. David Browne from Entertainment Weekly observes that Older reflects George Michael's struggles and quest for artistic maturity. He notes the album cover hints at a more introspective artist and describes the songs as melancholic, portraying Michael as a victim of his circumstances. While not deeming

5936-471: The award for Best British Album. The album's first single, "Praying for Time", with lyrics concerning social ills and injustice, was released in August 1990. James Hunter of Rolling Stone magazine described the song as "a distraught look at the world's astounding woundedness. Michael offers the healing passage of time as the only balm for physical and emotional hunger, poverty, hypocrisy, and hatred." The song

6048-486: The ballads feel bland and weak. Gardner expresses concern that Michael's introspection may stifle his creativity, leaving fans missing his former vibrancy. The Paul Moody's review, from NME highlights George Michael's introspective shift, following a six-year hiatus since Listen Without Prejudice Volume One . According to him the somber album cover mirrors his mood, and the music combines sophisticated soul with reflective lyrics, and while tracks like "Fast Love" showcase

6160-560: The case for the Spinning the Wheel EP , two new studio recordings of brand-new George Michael compositions). None of these singles were promoted with live performances at Top of the Pops only music videos were recorded for the four first singles and were played there. All of this helped to push the album sales from one week to another, with the album usually returning to the top 10 in the British charts. For example, when "Star People '97"

6272-488: The case of the O.J. Simpson trial . Older (George Michael album) Older is the third studio album by English singer-songwriter George Michael , released on 13 May 1996 in Europe by Virgin Records and Aegean Records . The American release, which occurred one day later, was the first album released by DreamWorks Records . It was Michael's first studio album since 1990's Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1 –

6384-471: The chart placing was "a testament to its timeless appeal and charm", adding: "It is a fitting tribute to George's song-writing genius... he would have been immensely proud and utterly thrilled." The period of 36 years taken to reach number one was a UK chart record, which would be surpassed by Kate Bush with " Running Up That Hill " in June 2022 which took 37 years. On 7 September 2017, Michael's estate released

6496-444: The charts in the US. Singles from that album included " Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go " (No. 1 in the UK and US), " Freedom ", " Everything She Wants ", and " Careless Whisper " which reached No. 1 in nearly 25 countries, including the UK and US, and was Michael's first solo effort as a single. In December 1984, the single " Last Christmas " was released. In 1985 Michael received the first of his three Ivor Novello Awards for Songwriter of

6608-686: The crowd to clap along to "Club Tropicana", but "they hadn't a clue – they thought he wanted applause and politely gave it", before adding that some Chinese did eventually "get the hang of clapping on the beat." A UK embassy official in China stated "there was some lively dancing but this was almost entirely confined to younger western members of the audience." The tour was documented by film director Lindsay Anderson and producer Martin Lewis in their film Wham! in China: Foreign Skies . With

6720-563: The duo play. The audience included members of the Chinese government. Chinese television presenter Kan Lijun, who was the on-stage host, spoke of Wham!'s historic performance: "No-one had ever seen anything like that before. All the young people were amazed and everybody was tapping their feet. Of course the police weren't happy and they were scared there would be riots." Wham! performed their hits with scantily clad dancers and strobing disco lights. According to Napier-Bell, Michael tried to get

6832-435: The end of Wham! was because I was beginning to realise I was gay, not bisexual." During the late 1980s, Michael had a relationship with make-up artist Kathy Jeung, who was regarded for a time as his artistic "muse" and who appeared in the " I Want Your Sex " video. Michael later said that she had been his "only bona fide" girlfriend, and that she knew of his bisexuality. In 2016, Jeung reacted to Michael's death by calling him

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6944-549: The film is taken from the Wham! classic. An official soundtrack album was released by Legacy Recordings on CD, two-disc vinyl , and digital formats on 8 November 2019. The album contains 14 Wham! and solo George Michael songs, as well as a previously unreleased song originally completed in 2015 titled " This Is How (We Want You to Get High) ". The soundtrack album debuted at number one on the UK Official Soundtrack Albums Chart and at number 11 on

7056-437: The first artist to perform live at the newly renovated Wembley Stadium in London. On 25 March 2008, a third part of the 25 Live Tour was announced for North America, with 21 dates in the US and Canada. Michael made his American acting debut by playing a guardian angel to Jonny Lee Miller 's character on Eli Stone , a US TV series. Each episode of the show's first season was named after a song of his. Michael also appeared on

7168-479: The first visit to China by a Western popular music act, generated worldwide media coverage, much of it centred on Michael. The headline in the Chicago Tribune read: "East meets Wham!, and another great wall comes down". Before Wham!'s appearance in China, many kinds of music in the country were forbidden. The band's manager, Simon Napier-Bell , had spent 18 months trying to convince Chinese officials to let

7280-399: The five-and-a-half-year gap was due to the legal battle that Michael experienced with his former record company Sony Music . Michael dedicated two years to the recording of Older , and the album found him exploring new musical territories in a more serious fashion compared to his previous work. At the time of release, the album was a huge commercial hit, particularly in Europe. In the UK,

7392-450: The formation of his sexuality was "a nurture thing, via the absence of my father who was always busy working. It meant I was exceptionally close to my mother", though he stated that "there are definitely those who have a predisposition to being gay in which the environment is irrelevant." In 2007, Michael said he had hidden his sexuality because of worries over what effect it might have on his mother. Two years later, he added: "My depression at

7504-617: The home his parents bought soon after his birth; he attended Roe Green Junior School and Kingsbury High School . Michael had two sisters: Yioda (born 1958) and Melanie (1960–2019). On BBC's Desert Island Discs , Michael said that his interest in music followed an injury to his head around the age of eight. While Michael was in his early teens, the family moved to Radlett . There, Michael began attending Bushey Meads School in Bushey , where he, as "Yog", met, sat down next to, and befriended, his future Wham! partner Andrew Ridgeley . The two had

7616-428: The middle nineties called Older was a tribute to Anselmo , really; there was a dedication to him on the album and fairly obvious male references. To my fans and the people that were really listening, I felt like I was trying to come out with them." Michael grew back a longer hair style during 1998, as was first shown on the video he recorded for " Outside ", premiered near the end of that year. Upon release, Older

7728-682: The most played artist on British radio during the period 1984–2004. Michael was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2023. Born in East Finchley , Middlesex, Michael rose to fame after forming the pop duo Wham! with Andrew Ridgeley in 1981. Their first two albums, Fantastic (1983) and Make It Big (1984), reached number one on the US Billboard 200 and UK Albums Chart . They had commercial success with singles " Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do) ", " Young Guns (Go for It) ", " Bad Boys ", " Club Tropicana ", " Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go ", " Last Christmas ", " Everything She Wants ", " Freedom ", and " I'm Your Man ". Their 1985 tour in China

7840-642: The narration throughout. NME , The Guardian and Empire all praised the film and rated it 4/5 stars. On 30 September 2022, a remastered and expanded version of Older was released comprising the original Older album, the Upper disc and three bonus CDs, containing remixes and live recordings of Older -era tracks. The album charted at number 2 on the UK Official Albums Chart Top 100 on 7 October 2022. Michael stated that his early fantasies were about women, which "led me to believe I

7952-431: The new meaning of "icon". After The Advocate called her the "greatest gay icon", Guy Babineau from Xtra Magazine stated in 2008: "I'm old enough to remember when people weren't called icons". Usually, the pop icon status of a celebrity is contingent upon longevity of notoriety. This is in contrast to cult icons , whose notoriety or recognition may be limited to a specific subculture . Some pop icons have left

8064-461: The number-one duet with Aretha Franklin , " I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me) ". His debut solo album, Faith (1987), stayed at number one on the Billboard 200 for 12 weeks and topped the UK Albums Chart. It is one of the best-selling albums of all time , having sold over 25 million copies worldwide. The singles " Faith ", " Father Figure ", " One More Try ", and " Monkey " reached number one on

8176-520: The one for Faith . Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1 was released in September 1990. The title is an indication of his desire to be taken more seriously as a songwriter. The album was released in Europe on 3 September 1990, and one week later in the US. It reached No. 1 in the UK Albums Chart and peaked at No. 2 on the US Billboard 200. It spent a total of 88 weeks on the UK Albums Chart and

8288-491: The prestigious title of 'Songwriter of The Year' for the third time. At the beginning of October 1996, George performed his first live shows for five years with a gig for Radio 1 FM followed by an Unplugged Session for MTV. The Radio 1FM audience consisted of just 200 people and the MTV Unplugged session slightly larger at 500. Both audiences included competition winners, some of whom had flown to London from all over

8400-502: The recording world during the six years between Listen Without Prejudice and Older . After a huge hit with a live duet with Elton John on " Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me " (that reached number one in both the UK and the US), Michael contributed several tracks to the charity album Red Hot + Dance in 1992 (with one song, " Too Funky ", being released as a single and reaching worldwide top 10 positions). The same year, he performed live at

8512-593: The same career ambition of being musicians. Michael busked on the London Underground , performing songs such as " '39 " by Queen . His involvement in the music business began with his working as a DJ, playing at the Bel Air Restaurant in Northwood , London, clubs, and local schools around Bushey, Stanmore , and Watford . This was followed by the formation of a short-lived ska band called

8624-455: The second "Fastlove" promo single as "Fully Extended Mix – edit", differing both from the one included on the "Fastlove" single (running at 9:27) and from the edited version (4:39) included on the first "Fastlove" promo. When released, Older & Upper was not listed in the UK charts as a different album than the original Older , and helped the album to jump from No. 65 to No. 36 during the competitive Christmas season . The album received

8736-456: The second most dangerous country in the world thanks to our special relationship with America." It reached No. 1 in Denmark and made the top 5 in most European charts. It peaked at No. 12 on the UK Singles Chart. In February 2003, Michael recorded another song in protest against the looming Iraq war, Don McLean 's "The Grave". The original was written by McLean in 1971 and was a protest against

8848-523: The single " Fantasy ". Written and produced by Michael, was recorded while he was working on Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1 . However, the track was not included on the album. Instead in October 1990, it was featured on the " Waiting for That Day " single in the United Kingdom and on the " Freedom! '90 " single in the rest of the world. On 7 September 2017, a new version reworked by Nile Rodgers

8960-401: The song was featured on the soundtrack of the movie . Despite censorship and radio play problems, "I Want Your Sex" reached No. 2 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 3 in the UK. The second single, " Faith ", was released in October 1987, a few weeks before the album. "Faith" became one of his most popular songs. The song was No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for four consecutive weeks, becoming

9072-562: The success of Michael's solo singles, " Careless Whisper " (1984) and " A Different Corner " (1986), rumours of an impending break up of Wham! intensified. The duo officially separated in 1986, after releasing a farewell single, " The Edge of Heaven " and a farewell compilation, The Final (their third album Music from the Edge of Heaven was released in North America and Japan), plus a sell-out concert at Wembley Stadium that included

9184-557: The synthesised production of his previous projects, delivering a more organic sound with the inclusion of brass and strings . Michael was particularly inspired by the music of Brazilian composer Antônio Carlos Jobim . Another big influence was the album's producer, Jon Douglas, who has mixed several George Michael songs as B-sides. They first met when Douglas produced Lisa Moorish 's version of " I'm Your Man " in 1995, to which Michael provided backing vocals. Michael and Douglas began to work together soon after, and they co-wrote "Spinning

9296-528: The top 40 altogether. This sustained single success has, of course, been achieved with a little help from marketing tricks such as remixes – or in this case a new recording of the album track which gives it a much-needed transformation into a deserved commercial smash." In 1996, George was voted 'Best British Male', at the MTV Europe Awards and the BRITs; and at The Ivor Novello Awards, he was awarded

9408-441: The top 75, and 35 of them on the top 10 (including 23 consecutive weeks). The steady sales of the album were the result of good promotion market and the release of six hit singles throughout a two-year period. All of these singles (except for the one for the title track) were released and promoted as EP's, in two available formats, most of them containing previously unreleased material (including live tracks, alternate versions and, in

9520-551: The word "icon" is a "term of religious origin" and arguably "used for the first time in celebrity culture to describe the American pop singer Madonna". Danesi also asserts that the word "is now used in reference to any widely known celebrity, male or female". Some international reference works such as Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary and the Diccionario panhispánico de dudas have included Madonna's name to illustrate

9632-468: The words "explore monogamy" on his partner's back in lipstick. Some radio stations played a toned-down version of the song, "I Want Your Love", with the word "love" replacing "sex". When "I Want Your Sex" reached the US charts, American Top 40 host Casey Kasem refused to say the song's title, referring to it only as "the new single by George Michael." In the US, the song was also sometimes listed as "I Want Your Sex (from Beverly Hills Cop II )", since

9744-504: The world premiere of the China film. The Wham! partnership ended officially with the commercially successful single "The Edge of Heaven", which reached No. 1 on the UK chart in June 1986. During early 1987, at the beginning of his solo career, Michael released " I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me) ", a duet with Aretha Franklin . "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)" was a one-off project that helped Michael achieve an ambition by singing with one of his favourite artists. It scored number one on both

9856-423: The world, as well as various specially invited guests. The album was re-released on 1 December 1997 in a CD box set titled Older & Upper including two discs, both in gold (instead of the original black from Older ): Alongside interactive elements, the Upper compact disc includes six tracks previously released on the singles from the album, notably featuring a version of "Fastlove (Part II)", only found on

9968-401: Was gay when he fell in love with a man. This stance was reiterated in a 1999 interview with The Advocate , where Michael told the editor-in-chief, Judy Wieder, that it was "falling in love with a man that ended his conflict over bisexuality". "I never had a moral problem with being gay", Michael told her. "I thought I had fallen in love with a woman a couple of times. Then I fell in love with

10080-509: Was Michael's first solo greatest hits collection. The collection of 28 songs (29 songs are included on the European and Australian release) are separated into two-halves, with each containing a particular theme and mood. The first CD, titled "For the Heart", predominantly contains ballads; the second CD, "For the Feet", consists mainly of dance tunes. It was released through Sony Music Entertainment as

10192-608: Was a Greek Cypriot restaurateur who emigrated from Patriki , Cyprus , to England in the 1950s. His mother, Lesley Angold (born Harrison, died 1997), was an English dancer. In June 2008, Michael told the Los Angeles Times that his maternal grandmother was Jewish, but she had married a non-Jewish man and raised their children with no knowledge of their Jewish background due to her fear during World War II . Michael spent most of his childhood in Kingsbury , London, in

10304-441: Was an instant success, reaching No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 6 in the UK. A video was released shortly thereafter, consisting of the lyrics on a dark background. Michael did not appear in this video or any subsequent videos for the album. The second single from Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1 , "Waiting for That Day", was an acoustic-heavy single, released as an immediate follow-up to "Praying for Time". "Freedom! '90"

10416-516: Was becoming prevalent in Britain. Although I had always had safe sex , I didn't want to sleep with a woman without telling her I was bisexual. I felt that would be irresponsible. Basically, I didn't want to have that uncomfortable conversation that might ruin the moment, so I stopped sleeping with them." In the same interview, he added: "If I wasn't with Kenny [his boyfriend at the time], I would have sex with women, no question". He said he believed that

10528-483: Was certified four-times Platinum by the BPI. The album produced five UK singles, all of which were released within an eight-month period: " Praying for Time ", " Waiting for That Day ", " Freedom! '90 ", " Heal the Pain ", and " Cowboys and Angels " (the latter being his only single not to chart in the UK top 40). Michael refused to do any promotion for the album. At the 1991 Brit Awards , Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1 won

10640-592: Was cursed." Pop culture icon Historians Asa Briggs and Peter Burke , explained that term " iconography " would pass into high culture , and later in the twentieth century, into popular culture , where " icon " refers to a secular celebrity like Madonna . She probably had a catalyst role, as Marcel Danesi , a professor of semiotics and linguistic anthropology at the University of Toronto cited in Language, Society, and New Media: Sociolinguistics that

10752-426: Was gay." In 1993, Feleppa died of an AIDS-related brain haemorrhage . Michael's single, " Jesus to a Child ", is a tribute to Feleppa (Michael consistently dedicated it to him before performing it live), as is his album Older (1996). In 2008, speaking about the loss of Feleppa, Michael said: "It was a terribly depressing time. It took about three years to grieve, then after that I lost my mother. I felt almost like I

10864-437: Was hailed as "one of the best performances of the tribute concert". Michael later reflected, "It was probably the proudest moment for me of my career, because it was me living out a childhood fantasy, I suppose, to sing one of Freddie's songs in front of 80,000 people." The Five Live EP featured five live recordings (six in several countries) performed by Michael, Queen, and Lisa Stansfield . "Somebody to Love" and "These Are

10976-500: Was highly acclaimed by music critics, with AllMusic journalist Steve Huey describing it as a "superbly crafted mainstream pop/rock masterpiece" and "one of the finest pop albums of the '80s". In a review by Rolling Stone magazine, journalist Mark Coleman commended most of the songs on the album, which he said "displays Michael's intuitive understanding of pop music and his increasingly intelligent use of his power to communicate to an ever-growing audience." In 1988, Michael embarked on

11088-415: Was homosexual and did not do so until 1998. The video for "Jesus to a Child" was a picture of images recalling loss, pain and suffering. Michael consistently dedicated the song to Feleppa before performing it live. Michael released " Fastlove ", an energetic tune about wanting gratification and fulfilment without commitment, in 1996. The single version was nearly five minutes long. "Fastlove" was supported by

11200-466: Was known for during the late eighties were replaced with a buzz cut black hair and mostly leather clothes. Michael commented, on The Oprah Winfrey Show , about his new appearance: "The way my image changed in Europe was that I looked very different, I had very short hair—I had really a kind of gay look in a way. I think I was trying to tell people I was okay with it [being gay], I just really didn't want to share it with journalists. The album I made in

11312-399: Was less spectacular, where it reached No. 40 on the Billboard 200 ("Somebody to Love" reached No. 30 on the US Billboard Hot 100 ). The performance would later feature on Queen's compilation album Greatest Hits III . During November 1994, after a long period of seclusion, Michael appeared at the first MTV Europe Music Awards show, where he gave a performance of a new song, " Jesus to

11424-415: Was met with widespread acclaim from music critics . Stephen Thomas Erlewine from AllMusic website described Older as George Michael's serious bid for artistic credibility, contrasting it with his earlier, more upbeat work. He notes a shift from catchy dance-pop to pretentious ballads, with even the dance track "Fastlove" lacking energy. While acknowledging Michael's craftsmanship, Erlewine criticizes

11536-476: Was not a proper promotion for Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1 . Rather, it featured Michael singing his favourite cover songs. Among his favourites was " Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me ", a 1974 song by Elton John ; Michael and John had performed the song together at the Live Aid concert in 1985, and again for Michael's concert at London's Wembley Arena on 25 March 1991, where the duet was recorded. "Don't Let

11648-446: Was on the path to heterosexuality ", but at puberty he started to fantasise about men, which he later said "had something to do with my environment". At the age of 19, Michael told Andrew Ridgeley that he was bisexual . Michael also told one of his two sisters, but he was advised not to tell his parents about his sexuality. In 1998, not long after he was outed for his sexuality, Michael said on Parkinson that he became confident he

11760-403: Was particularly notable for the release of its six singles. All of them reached the UK top 3, hitting a record for the most singles in the British top 3 released from a single album. At the time of release of the fifth of them, "Star People '97", chart specialist James Masterson noted George Michael's success on the UK Singles Chart, writing: "Ironically enough denied by the very man who some say he

11872-514: Was pure Freddie." —Queen guitarist Brian May on Michael's performance at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert. Michael performed with Queen at The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert on 20 April 1992 at Wembley Stadium . The concert was a tribute to the life of the late Queen frontman, Freddie Mercury , with the proceeds going to AIDS research. Michael performed " '39 ", " These Are the Days of Our Lives " with Lisa Stansfield and " Somebody to Love ". Michael's performance of "Somebody to Love"

11984-540: Was released as a single from Listen Without Prejudice / MTV Unplugged (2017). The album includes the original version of "Fantasy" and the 1998 version; the Nile Rodgers remix was not included on the disc but was made available to purchasers as a digital download. On 18 October 2017, a music video was released on Vevo . In 2019, the Emma Thompson -written film Last Christmas was released. The title of

12096-414: Was released in 2004, it was critically acclaimed and went to No. 1 on the UK Albums Chart . The album became one of the fastest-selling albums in the UK, selling over 200,000 copies in the first week alone. It reached the Top 5 on most European charts and peaked at No. 12 in the US, selling over 500,000 copies to earn a Gold certification from the RIAA . " Amazing ", the third single from the album, became

12208-480: Was released in mid-1997, Older achieved a 21–14–10–7 progression on the charts. Very much the same happened when "You Have Been Loved/The Strangest Thing '97" was issued as the sixth single (sixteen months after the original release of the album), and Older showed a 24–14–7 move on the UK charts. As of April 2019, Older was the 97th best-selling album of all time in the UK. In the United States, however,

12320-551: Was the first by a Western popular music act, and generated worldwide media coverage. Michael took part in Band Aid 's UK number-one single " Do They Know It's Christmas? " in 1984 and performed at the following year's Live Aid concert. Michael's first solo single, " Careless Whisper " (1984), reached number one in over 20 countries, including the UK and US. The second solo single, " A Different Corner ", also reached number one in 1986. After Wham! disbanded that year, Michael released

12432-734: Was the second of only two singles from Listen Without Prejudice to be supported by a music video (the other being the Michael-less "Praying for Time"). The song alludes to his struggles with his artistic identity, and prophesied his efforts shortly thereafter to end his recording contract with Sony Music . As if to prove the song's sentiment, Michael refused to appear in the video (directed by David Fincher ), and instead recruited supermodels Naomi Campbell , Linda Evangelista , Christy Turlington , Tatjana Patitz , and Cindy Crawford to appear in and lip sync in his stead. It also featured lyrics critical of his sex symbol status. It reached No. 8 on

12544-409: Was unknown at the time; he later had success as a performer with the band Climie Fisher in 1988. Michael and Franklin won a Grammy Award in 1988 for Best R&B Performance – Duo or Group with Vocal for the song. In late 1987, Michael released his debut solo album, Faith . The first single released from the album was " I Want Your Sex ", in mid-1987. The song was banned by many radio stations in

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