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'Well Beyond Pop Fame': When George Michael Opened Up About His Dream for Wham! to be the 'Biggest Band in the World'
The late singer George Michael would have been 61 years old this year. Let us take a trip back to one of his interviews where the legendary singer had shared his dreams.
We are remembering George Michael on what would have been the singer’s 61st birthday. The legendary singer of Wham! Passed away on Christmas Day in 2016. On this 25th June, the singer would have been 61 years old.
George Michael first entered stardom with Andrew Ridgeley as the musical duo Wham! Though the two of them split in 1986, George went on to launch an extremely successful solo career. In 1989, his album Faith won the Album of the Year Grammy award. Michael, who came out as gay in 1998, is also known for his charity work involving HIV. In 2016, George Michael passed away of natural causes when he was only 53. To remember the iconic singer just after his birthday, we are talking about one of his interviews from 1985 in which he appeared with Ridgeley where he talked about his dreams involving Wham!
George Michael wanted Wham! To become the biggest band
This interview, conducted with the British musical duo in London by PEOPLE Magazine, perfectly captures how popular Wham! was at the height of their fame in 1985. Both George Michael and Andrew Ridgely were 22 years old back then and they had opened up about not only their newfound fame and fans, but also their hopes, dreams, and family.
In this interview, George Michael said “There's no doubt that our ambition is to become the biggest band in the world, and I think it's within our reach.” He added that there is nothing to be ashamed of about being so confident if it could be proven right. After this, he also went on to talk about the type of music that he writes and how it is the kind of tunes that the listeners want to hear. Having multiple number-one hits under their name already, it is not hard to understand why Michael was so confident about being a master of popular music. Even Elton John had called him the Paul McCartney of his generation.
He had also opened up about how he did not like critics who dismissed Wham!’s music, not because it meant less money for the duo, but because, “It's just the idea that people who could have your music in their home, don't.”
The duo had also opened up about their music
In the interview, it was mentioned that George Michael was not a huge fan of Wham!’s first album Fantastic. He mentioned that to him, “it sounds like a white group trying to sound like a black group and not doing it terribly well.” Later, the Last Christmas singer also spoke about how he was the main person handling everything music-wise and how Andrew was his biggest fan. Saying that Ridgeley did not mind standing aside and letting him do his thing as he knew that it was the best course of action for them to reach their goals.
To this, Ridgeley said, “I know the range he is capable of, and it's ridiculous to think he should waste fantastic songs just because they don't fit into what we want to do as Wham!” while they were talking about Michael’s solo endeavors. The duo also spoke a little about their family in the interview.
About one year after this interview in 1985, the duo split due to some problems. This did not halt Michael’s career as he went on to sell millions of albums and have many hits with his solo career. On his 61st birthday, we pay respect to this amazingly talented musician who left the world too soon.
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