George Michael: biography, date and place of birth, albums, creativity, personal life, interesting facts, date and cause of death

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

George Michael was rightfully considered an icon of popular music in the UK. Although his songs are loved not only in Foggy Albion, but also in almost all countries. Everything to which he tried to apply his efforts was distinguished by inimitable style. And later, his musical compositions became classics at all … Michael George's biography, personal life, photos will be presented to your attention in the article.

Childhood

George Michael (real name - Yorgos Kyriakos Panayiotou) was born in the summer of 1963 in the capital of Great Britain. His father was Cypriot. At one time, he moved to the shores of Foggy Albion and began working as a restorer. Then he met his wife, a native Englishwoman.

According to the singer's recollections, he practically did not see his parents because of their employment. That is why the future performer was raised by his older sisters. Little Yorgos was very shy andmeek child. In addition, he had certain vision problems. He was forced to wear large glasses. He was bullied repeatedly by his classmates for his appearance.

When he was twelve, he seriously considered becoming a pilot. But after a while, he realized that he was not destined to become a pilot.

The beginning of passion for music

The parents of the future singer forced him to practice the violin. And since he was left-handed, playing this instrument did not bring him much pleasure. But, nevertheless, young Yorgos always tried to repeat and reproduce the melodies he heard. His mother even gave him a special recorder as a gift.

In addition, he became interested in modern music, and in the first place - the records of Queen and Elton John. By and large, it was these performers who predetermined the future style of the singer.

And after a while, young Yorgos became close to his classmate named Andrew Ridgeley. On the instructions of the teachers, he helped him at school. It was thanks to him that the future singer began to play sports, went on a diet and inserted contact lenses. As a result, six months later, the young man became an imposing dark-haired guy. Along with the new appearance, other hobbies appeared. Friends skipped classes and began to give the first performances for random passers-by in the subway. Basically, they performed compositions by The Beatles, D. Bowie and E. John. Over time, they began to play their own songs.

The first professional team

A little later, the guys organized their own musical group called The Executive. As a rule, they gave their concerts in small clubs in London and in schools. Unfortunately, this team quickly broke up, but Yorgos and Andry continued to collaborate and compose. Besides, they have already accumulated some good songs. They recorded demo versions of their compositions and sent them to one of the directorates of the record label. As a result, the guys signed a lucrative contract. The musical project was called Wham!

After a while, this musical formation released the first single, which rose to the top of the charts. It was then that Yorgos decided to take a pseudonym - George Michael.

On the road to glory

The group instantly became popular. The records were sold in enormous quantities. Follow-up singles such as I'm Your Man and Last Christmas cemented their meteoric success. But unexpectedly, the musicians announced the termination of this project. According to Michael, his producers imposed on him a certain image of a teenager. But he did not consider himself as such.

So the story of Wham! ended. The band's last album was called The Final. Critics were flattering about this work. The band's farewell performance took place in 1986 at the famous Wembley Stadium in London. Then the last single appeared. It was called The Edge of Heaven.

Floating freely

According to the biography, George Michael beganto engage in solo work when he was still in the Wham! It was then that he released two singles.

Careless Whisper was written in the late 70's, but it wasn't released until 1985. The fans liked the song, and George was recognized as the best songwriter of the year.

The next year, Michael released another ballad A Different Corner. The single once again rose to the top of the charts. Then Wham! officially broke up, and the singer announced that he would start recording serious music.

In the fall of 1987, the artist's debut solo record appeared on store shelves. It was called Faith. The album became the best-selling album in the United States. After that, George went on a world tour. A little later, the tour was interrupted. Due to problems with the vocal cords, the singer was forced to undergo surgery. Fortunately, this surgery went without consequences.

"War" with the label

According to his biography, singer George Michael presented a new record in 1990. This work, according to critics, was much weaker than Faith. But it contained two hits. We are talking about Praying for Time and, of course, Freedom! '90.

Meanwhile, the singer was dissatisfied with the sales of the album and blamed his label Sony. He believed that little money had been invested in the promotion of the new record. As a result, a "war" began between Sony and the artist. Litigation went on for two years. In this unpleasant story, the label was the winner after all. The contract was, of course, lost. In addition, Michael lost the rights to all hissongs that were released on Sony. True, the singer was given the opportunity to redeem them. A new label, Dreamworks, has started doing this.

Free again

Freed from the contract with Sony, the singer immediately set to work on a new "studio". And in 1996, Michael's long-awaited album went on sale. It's called Older. The album was a great success in European countries. Two songs, namely Fastlove and Jesus To A Child, topped the charts in the UK.

A little later, the singer also presented the next single Freeek! A rather expensive video was shot for this song. Unfortunately, the investment did not pay off at all, as the composition did not reach the first place even in his native UK.

The long-awaited studio album of the singer appeared in 2004. It was named Patience. The album was able to rise to the first positions in the charts. Then Michael said that this work is generally the last for public sale. According to him, he decided to leave the recording industry for good. And he intends to distribute his musical compositions for free via the Internet. He also added that now he doesn't need fame or money…

Recent years

Meanwhile, George Michael continued to write and record his songs. And in 2010, he went on a European tour. Before the concert in Vienna, the musician felt unwell, and subsequent performances were cancelled. Doctors diagnosed him with pneumonia. The illness was very difficult. He was literally on the verge of life and death. Fortunately, the singer's body was able to cope with the insidious disease.

A year later, he specially released the single White Light. In the composition, he spoke about his experiences during his illness and thanked all the people who prayed for his recovery. By the way, he performed White Light and Freedom at the closing of the London Summer Olympics.

In the fall, Michael resumed the interrupted tour. And in 2014, a live album appeared on the shelves of music stores. It's about Symphonica. All songs were recorded during the last tour.

The end of George Michael's biography. Cause of death

George Michael passed away at the end of December 2016. He was 53. His body was found in his own bed. According to doctors, the musician died of a heart attack. Ironically, the death of a talented performer occurred exactly on Christmas, which was sung by him in his legendary composition Last Christmas. This song became prophetic for him.

George Michael was buried at Highgate Churchyard, in the vicinity of the capital of Great Britain. A few months later, it became known that the singer repeatedly found himself in a clinic for drug addicts. The last time he went there was in 2015…

Philanthropist

As it turned out, the singer has long been a philanthropist. He never advertised his charitable activities. So, he supported two foundations that provide assistance to HIV-infected and cancer patients. Alsohe transferred his funds to an organization for problem children.

He donated money to ordinary people who found themselves in a difficult situation. So, in one of the TV shows, he heard about a woman who dreams of getting pregnant. But she did not have the funds to undergo the IVF procedure. A day later, the singer sent her the money she needed.

Biography of George Michael: family, personal life

Rumors about the singer's unconventional sexual orientation arose a long time ago. But it was only in 1998 that he officially admitted that he was gay. After this loud statement, the real persecution of the singer began. It was staged by a number of well-known tabloids. But when Michael left the stage for a while, the situation returned to normal.

In the meantime, it became known that the partner of the performer was a sports coach named Gross. This relationship lasted fifteen years. In 2009, the two men broke up. According to the media, the reason was Michael's strong addiction to hashish.

Since 2011, the singer began to live with Faddy Fawaz. He is from Lebanon. Worked as a hair stylist. It was he who first found George's lifeless body on Christmas Day 2016…

Interesting facts

1. For one unofficial concert at the villa of the Russian oligarch George Michael received 3 million dollars.
2. In the same year, the singer first visited Kyiv and Moscow. These concerts took place during the tour.
3. In the fall of 2010, George Michael was detained by the police. Law enforcement officers found marijuana on him. In addition, he was driving his car under the influencedrugs. As a result, the singer was sentenced to eight weeks in prison and a heavy fine.
4. Wham! became the first Western band that in the spring of 1985 was able to organize a series of performances in the Celestial Empire. It is curious that it was impossible to export currency from the country. Therefore, they wanted to give the musicians a fee in bicycles.
5. In 2005, at the Berlin Film Festival, the singer presented a documentary called “George Michael. Other story". The script for this film was written by the performer himself. According to him, he perceives it as a kind of confession. He analyzed his mistakes in it. He also spoke honestly about his personal life, the problem of drug addiction and much more.