Like many women of my era, I was first introduced to George Michael through WHAM. Initially, they really were not my cup of tea. I was not into bands which had a huge female following, who just fanned out for the group, wearing their swag and just going into hysterics. In the same way, I was never a huge New Kids on the Block fan either.
But then my Dad really loved Careless Whisper and played it a lot at home. And my Dad was a huge musical influence for me growing up. And from that song, I was hooked. I became a FAN!! In grade 5, I asked for Wham’s Make it Big album for my birthday present. I listened to that album non stop and knew all the words. I still have it and it is at the front of my album collection.
And in grade 7, when George Michael released his solo debut, I had that cassette. And even though it had some controversial lyrics, no one was stopping me from grooving to that cassette! My fandom continued! And quite honestly, George Michael’s music has been with me throughout. High School was Listen without Prejudice, which contains my favourite song, George Michael’s interpretation of Stevie Wonder’s “They Won’t Go When I go”. During university, he released “Older” and it was the perfect music to play at night, just looking out the window, wondering who I was going to be when I was Older.
When I was in Law School, he released Unplugged, which has my favourite version of “Everything She Wants”, recorded in Japan. And then he released Songs from the Last Century, where he came out as being gay in a small lyric of a song referring to his lover as “he”. I remember my roommate’s boyfriend teasing me that my musical boyfriend was gay and that this would ruin my adoration for him; that guy did not know anything! I was glad that George was comfortable being himself and sharing himself with his audience. I felt like he trusted his fans to be himself and sing about his true life. It was insightful.
His voice and his interpretation of songs, has just always been magical and hypnotizing to me. And when he did covers, he always re-did my favourite songs such as Stevie Wonder’s “As” or Roberta Flack’s “The First Time” or Bonnie Rait’s “I can’t make you love me”…..I could go on.
I loved his videos, his cheeky take on controversies and his general attitude. His confidence and soulful voice have been a companion and a part of my soundtrack of my life. Honestly, I can reference so many amazing moments, and his voice was always present or in the background of those memories – that’s how important he has been to me.
I was lucky enough to see him in concert with my husband and for me, it was hands down, one of the best musical experiences in my life. He transported me that night with his music and I am grateful that I finally had that experience.
When he passed away, my close friend shared the news, knowing how important he was to me. It was at that moment that I understood the fans of the Beatles or Elvis, being devastated.
It was upsetting because you knew, he had more to share, and that although his music would live on, he was no longer.
Whenever a George Michael song comes on the radio, it does not get changed. I hope that one day, my kids can discover his music and appreciate it, even in a little way. I think that they will have a better understanding of me, by doing so.
But that’s just one Diva’s view.
#GeorgeMichael #MusicalInfluences
Diva's View 