George Michael

George Michael first found fame in the early 80s as one half of the massively popular bubble-gum pop duo Wham. After Wham! his sound matured towards soul-influenced dance pop.

His breakout solo album Faith (1987) produced several U.S. No. 1 hit singles including “One More Try”, “Faith”, “Father Figure” and "Monkey" and spent 51 weeks in the Billboard Top 10, twelve weeks of which were at No.1. It was also the first album by a white solo artist to hit No.1 on the US R&B charts. It sold more than 14 million copies worldwide.

Although it was considered his greatest achievement, Faith left Michael feeling dissatisfied and frustrated with the artistic constraints his pop-icon status was putting on him. He was also struggling to deal with his secret homosexuality. These feelings of loneliness, disaffection and creative malcontent were reflected in his next solo album, 1990’s Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1. The album had a more soulful and stripped-down sound, producing five U.S. Top 40 hits: “Waiting for that Day” “Cowboys and Angels”, “Heal the Pain”, “Praying for Time” and the personal confessional song “Freedom! '90”. With the success of the singles, the album sold 7 million copies and spent 42 weeks in the Billboard 200 charts.

Because Michael wanted to lessen the extreme celebrity he had experienced after his last album, he approached his label Sony before the release of Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1 and announced that he wasn't going to promote the album, including making videos, preferring to let the music speak for itself. Record executives were infuriated, and the two parties eventually ended up in court, with Michael seeking to end his contract with Sony. He ultimately lost, resulting in the permanent shelving of Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 2. At the conclusion of the court case, Dreamworks/SKG and Virgin teamed up to buy his contract from Sony. It was six years before Michael released another album.

Older was released on Virgin Records in May 1996, debuting at No.1 in the UK and No.6 in the US. It spawned several Top 10 hits, most notably “Jesus to a Child”, a mournful encomium to Michael’s secret partner since 1991, Brazilian fashion designer Anselmo Feleppa. Feleppa had died three years earlier of an AIDS-related brain hemorrhage, leaving Michael feeling alone and despondent for the next two years. At the time no one knew who the song was about, as Michael was still not openly gay, however Michael now regularly dedicates the song to Feleppa when he performs it live. Older went on to sell more than 12 million copies worldwide and spent more than 96 weeks in the UK charts.

After grappling with the death of his partner, he met his current partner Kenny Goss. But while that joy started to ease his pain, he soon lost his mother to skin cancer, a loss that tormented George for several years. He did not write or record during that period, except for 2000's Songs From The Last Century, a CD of big-band and jazzy covers.

In 1998, Michael was arrested in Beverly Hills, California, on a charge of lewd conduct in a park bathroom. The arrest made worldwide headlines and led him to publicly announce his homosexuality. He subsequently poked fun at the arrest in the hit single "Outside". The single also led the release of a greatest hits package, Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best Of George Michael.

As an openly gay man, Michael became more at ease with himself, outspoken and political. He headlined the US concert for gay rights called Equality Rocks in DC in 1999, then became a critic of the Iraq war in the UK. He covered Don McLean's "The Grave", and wrote and released his own anti-Blair/Bush song "Shoot The Dog", to critical jeering in 2004.

In 2004 Michael released Patience, which sold more than 200,000 copies in the first week alone. It spun several Top 10 hits including “Freeek!”, “Amazing” and “Flawless (Go to the City)”.

In 2007 Michael announced that he would tour the UK, his first tour in more than 15 years, to celebrate 25 years in the music industry. At the same time, he released TwentyFive, a greatest hits package highlighting his career. In 2008, he toured North America for the first time in 17 years, and ended the tour with two dates at Earl's Court in London and one date in Denmark.