Wham! (pop Duo)
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Wham! were an English
pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...
duo formed in
Bushey Bushey is a town in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire in the East of England. It had a population of 25,328 in the 2011 census, rising to 28,416 in the 2021 census, an increase of 12.19%. This makes Bushey the second most populated town ...
in 1981 consisting of
George Michael 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 List of best-selling music artists, best-selling rec ...
and
Andrew Ridgeley Andrew John Ridgeley (born 26 January 1963) is an English musician, best known for his work in the 1980s in the musical duo Wham! consisting of Ridgeley and George Michael. Associated with the MTV-driven Second British Invasion of the US, th ...
. They were one of the most successful pop acts during the 1980s, selling more than 30 million certified records worldwide from 1982 to 1986. Associated with the MTV-driven
Second British Invasion The Second British Invasion was a sharp increase in the popularity of British synth-pop and new pop artists in the United States. It began in the summer of 1982, peaked in 1983, and continued throughout much of the 1980s. The MTV music video ...
of the US, the singles "
Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" is a song by English pop duo Wham!, first released as a single in the UK on 14 May 1984. It became their first UK and US number one hit. It was written and produced by George Michael. The single was certified plat ...
", "
Careless Whisper "Careless Whisper" is a song recorded by English singer-songwriter George Michael. Released as the second single from Wham!'s second studio album ''Make It Big'' (1984), it was written by Michael and Andrew Ridgeley, with Michael producing the ...
", and "
Everything She Wants "Everything She Wants" is a single by the British pop duo Wham!, released in 1984 under Epic Records. The song was part of a double A-side release with " Last Christmas". Written and produced by George Michael, a member of the duo, "Everything ...
" all topped the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Their 1984 Christmas hit "
Last Christmas "Last Christmas" is a song by British pop duo Wham!. Written and produced by George Michael, it was released on 3 December 1984 via CBS Records internationally and as a double A-side via Epic Records with " Everything She Wants" in several Eur ...
" has become a staple of the holiday season since its release, with all proceeds from the single going to charity. Influenced by
funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...
and
soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...
music and presenting themselves as disaffected youth, Wham!'s 1983 debut album ''
Fantastic Fantastic or Fantastik may refer to: Music * ''Fantastic'' (Toy-Box album) * ''Fantastic'' (Wham! album) * '' Fan-Tas-Tic (Vol. 1)'', an album by Slum Village * '' Fantastic, Vol. 2'', an album by Slum Village * ''Fantastic'' (EP), an EP by ...
'' addressed the United Kingdom's unemployment problem and teen angst over adulthood. Their second studio album ''
Make It Big ''Make It Big'' is the second studio album by English pop duo Wham!, released in 1984. In comparison to their earlier work, Wham! (George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley) had more control over the album's production and Michael would also be credit ...
'' in 1984 was a worldwide pop smash hit, charting at number one in both the UK and the United States. In 1985, Wham! made a highly publicised ten-day visit to China, the first by a Western pop group. The event was seen as a major watershed moment in increasing friendly bilateral relations between China and the West. In 1986, Wham! disbanded. Michael was keen to create music targeted at a more sophisticated adult market rather than the duo's primarily teenage audience. Before going their separate ways, they released a farewell single, "
The Edge of Heaven "The Edge of Heaven" is a song by English pop duo Wham!, released on Epic Records in 1986. It was written and produced by George Michael, one half of the duo, and was promoted in advance as Wham!'s farewell single. History With the known desire ...
", and a greatest-hits album titled '' The Final'', along with a farewell concert entitled the Final.


History

Michael and Ridgeley met at
Bushey Meads School Bushey Meads School (also known as "BMS") is a coeducational secondary school and sixth form with academy status, located in Bushey, Hertfordshire, England. The school forms part of the Bushey St James Trust, in partnership with Little Reddings ...
in
Bushey Bushey is a town in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire in the East of England. It had a population of 25,328 in the 2011 census, rising to 28,416 in the 2021 census, an increase of 12.19%. This makes Bushey the second most populated town ...
near the town of
Watford Watford () is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of Central London, on the banks of the River Colne, Hertfordshire, River Colne. Initially a smal ...
in Hertfordshire. The two at first performed in a short-lived
ska Ska (; , ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a w ...
band called the Executive, alongside former school friends David Mortimer (later known as David Austin), Andrew Leaver, Tony Bywaters, Jamie Gould and Paul Ridgeley. When this group split, Michael and Ridgeley eventually formed Wham!. Ridgeley explained that the name originated from a need for "something that captured the essence of what set us apart—our energy and our friendship—and then it came to us: Wham! Wham! was snappy, immediate, fun and boisterous too." British graphic design studio
Stylorouge Stylorouge is a graphic design studio based in Yalding, Kent, formed in London by creative director Rob O'Connor in 1981. Art work created by the studio has included record sleeve designs for bands such as Siouxsie and the Banshees for their 19 ...
was credited with adding the exclamation mark to the name of the band. Ridgeley and Michael worked persistently to get a foot in the door with recording executives. Ridgeley would frequently run into Mark Dean from
Innervision Records Innervision Records was an independent record label distributed by Sony Music Entertainment, CBS Records. The label was established around 1981 by Mark Dean and Shamsi Ahmed. Perhaps the most recognizable artist associated with Innervision was ...
at the Three Crowns Public House in Bushey Heath
Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...
, and hand him the band's demo tape. In February 1982, Dean met with Michael and Ridgeley and offered them a recording deal. "I'm going to offer Wham! a deal with my new label Innervision," Dean said. "It's not a huge thing, I'm taking a punt. I'd like you to have a crack at recording a single or two and we'll see what happens from there." Initially the pair wrote songs such as "
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do) "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)" is the debut single by English pop duo Wham! on Innervision Records, released on 11 June 1982. It was written by Wham! members George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. History "Wham Rap!" was the first song written by ...
" and "
Club Tropicana "Club Tropicana" is a single by English pop duo Wham!, released on 22 July 1983 on Innervision Records. It was written by members George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. History "Club Tropicana" was written in 1981 in Ridgeley's living room, befo ...
" together, but part way through the recording of their debut album ''
Fantastic Fantastic or Fantastik may refer to: Music * ''Fantastic'' (Toy-Box album) * ''Fantastic'' (Wham! album) * '' Fan-Tas-Tic (Vol. 1)'', an album by Slum Village * '' Fantastic, Vol. 2'', an album by Slum Village * ''Fantastic'' (EP), an EP by ...
'', the pair agreed that Michael was the stronger songwriter, and would take creative control. Still teenagers, they promoted themselves as hedonistic youngsters, proud to live a carefree life without work or commitment. This was reflected in their earliest singles which, part-parody, part-social comment, briefly earned Wham! a reputation as a dance protest group. The debut record to be released by the band was "Wham Rap!" in June 1982. The song charted at only No. 105. In September 1982, "
Young Guns (Go for It) "Young Guns (Go for It)" (also listed as "Young Guns (Go for It!)" on some releases) is a song by English pop duo Wham! first released as a single in the UK by Innervision Records on 17 September 1982. Written and co-produced by George Michael, t ...
" was issued. Initially, it also stalled outside the UK Top 40 but the band got lucky when the BBC programme ''
Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...
'' scheduled them after another act unexpectedly pulled out of the show.


Increasing success

Wham!'s first manager was Bryan Morrison. The effect of Wham! on the public was felt from the moment they finished their debut performance of "Young Guns (Go for It)" on ''Top of the Pops''. Michael and Ridgley wore white espadrilles sockless, an open suede jacket and polo shirt, and rolled-up denim jeans. Ridgeley stood behind him, flanked by backing singers
Dee C. Lee Diane Catherine Sealy (born 6 June 1961), known as Dee C. Lee or Dee C Lee, is a British singer. Born to Saint Lucian parents, she grew up in south-east London. Early in her career, she was a member of the British band Central Line under the a ...
and
Shirlie Holliman Shirlie Kemp (née Holliman; born 18 April 1962) is an English singer who found fame in the 1980s with Wham! and as part of the duo Pepsi & Shirlie along with Helen DeMacque. Early years Shirley Holliman was the fourth child of five, born to ...
. Afterwards, the song shot into the Top 40 at No. 24 and peaked at No. 3 in December. The following year, Dee C. Lee began her work with
Paul Weller John William Weller (born 25 May 1958), better known as Paul Weller, is an English singer-songwriter and musician. Weller achieved fame in the late 1970s as the guitarist and principal singer and songwriter of the rock band the Jam, alongside ...
in
the Style Council The Style Council were an English pop band formed in Woking in 1982 by Paul Weller, the former lead vocalist, principal songwriter and guitarist with the rock band the Jam, and keyboardist Mick Talbot, previously a member of Dexys Midnight Ru ...
, and was replaced by Helen 'Pepsi' DeMacque. Holliman and DeMacque would later record as
Pepsi & Shirlie Pepsi & Shirlie were an English pop duo group formed in London in 1985 by two backing singers for Wham! They released two albums, ''All Right Now'' in 1987 and ''Change'' in 1991, and their debut single " Heartache" reached number 2 in the U ...
. Wham! followed up "Young Guns (Go for It)" with a reissue of "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)", " Bad Boys" and "
Club Tropicana "Club Tropicana" is a single by English pop duo Wham!, released on 22 July 1983 on Innervision Records. It was written by members George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. History "Club Tropicana" was written in 1981 in Ridgeley's living room, befo ...
". By the end of 1983, Wham! were competing against pop rivals
Culture Club Culture Club are an English new wave music, new wave band formed in London in 1981. The band comprises Boy George (lead vocals), Roy Hay (musician), Roy Hay (guitar and keyboards), and Mikey Craig (bass guitar), and formerly included Jon Moss ( ...
and
Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English pop rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor (bass guitarist), John Taylor. After several early changes, the band's line-up settled ...
as one of Britain's biggest pop acts. Their debut album ''
Fantastic Fantastic or Fantastik may refer to: Music * ''Fantastic'' (Toy-Box album) * ''Fantastic'' (Wham! album) * '' Fan-Tas-Tic (Vol. 1)'', an album by Slum Village * '' Fantastic, Vol. 2'', an album by Slum Village * ''Fantastic'' (EP), an EP by ...
'' spent two weeks at No. 1 in the UK album charts in 1983, but the album achieved only modest success in the US.


Legal disputes with Innervision

Soon after this, Ridgeley became conscious of legal problems with their initial contract at Innervision. While the legal battle raged, Innervision released a medley of non-single album tracks from ''Fantastic'', entitled "
Club Fantastic Megamix "Club Fantastic Megamix" is a medley single released by Wham! on 25 November 1983, and was the last single release for the duo on Innervision Records. It was mixed by DMC's Alan Couthard and approved by Mark Dean, the manager of Innervision Recor ...
". Wham! publicly denounced the release. After all the legal wrangling, Innervision settled out of court.


Switch to Epic and continued success

After the settlement, Innervision's distributor,
CBS Records CBS Records may refer to: * CBS Records, a former name of Sony Music, a global music company * CBS/Sony, a former name of Sony Music Entertainment Japan, a Japanese music company division of Sony * CBS Records International, a label for Columbia Re ...
, took over Wham!'s contract, placing them on the Columbia label in the U.S. and on
Epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film defined by the spectacular presentation of human drama on a grandiose scale Epic(s) ...
worldwide. Wham! returned in 1984 with a new album and an updated pop image. These changes helped to propel Wham!'s next single, "
Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" is a song by English pop duo Wham!, first released as a single in the UK on 14 May 1984. It became their first UK and US number one hit. It was written and produced by George Michael. The single was certified plat ...
", into the top ten of several countries around the world. It became their first U.S. and UK No. 1 single, accompanied by a video of the duo with Pepsi and Shirlie, all wearing
Katharine Hamnett Katharine Eleanor Hamnett (née Appleton; born 16 August 1947) is an English fashion designer best known for her political T-shirts. Early life Hamnett was born on 16 August 1947 in Gravesend, Kent, the daughter of James Appleton, a group ca ...
T-shirts with the slogans "CHOOSE LIFE" and "GO GO". The next single was "
Careless Whisper "Careless Whisper" is a song recorded by English singer-songwriter George Michael. Released as the second single from Wham!'s second studio album ''Make It Big'' (1984), it was written by Michael and Andrew Ridgeley, with Michael producing the ...
", featuring only Michael in the music video. In certain markets, including the U.S., the single was promoted as "Wham! featuring George Michael", while most other markets it was credited to Michael as a solo act despite being written by both Michael and Ridgeley. The song was a ballad, marking a departure from previous releases. It reached No. 1, selling over 1.3 million copies in the UK. "Careless Whisper" marked a new phase in Michael's career, as his labels began to somewhat distance him from the group Wham!'s playboy image. The next single was "
Freedom Freedom is the power or right to speak, act, and change as one wants without hindrance or restraint. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving oneself one's own laws". In one definition, something is "free" i ...
" and was simply promoted as a Wham! single. Wham! used a video edited together from footage of their tour in China for "Freedoms single release in the US, which was in July 1985. Their second album, ''
Make It Big ''Make It Big'' is the second studio album by English pop duo Wham!, released in 1984. In comparison to their earlier work, Wham! (George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley) had more control over the album's production and Michael would also be credit ...
'', climbed to No. 1 on the album charts and the band set off on an arena tour at the end of 1984. The double A-side single "
Last Christmas "Last Christmas" is a song by British pop duo Wham!. Written and produced by George Michael, it was released on 3 December 1984 via CBS Records internationally and as a double A-side via Epic Records with " Everything She Wants" in several Eur ...
" / "
Everything She Wants "Everything She Wants" is a single by the British pop duo Wham!, released in 1984 under Epic Records. The song was part of a double A-side release with " Last Christmas". Written and produced by George Michael, a member of the duo, "Everything ...
" became the highest-selling single ever to peak at No. 2 in the UK charts. It stayed at No. 2 for five weeks and, as of February 2020, was the 10th best-selling single of all time in the United Kingdom, selling over 1.9 million copies in the UK. Wham! donated all their royalties from the single to the Ethiopian famine appeal to coincide with the fund-raising intentions of Band Aid's "
Do They Know It's Christmas? "Do They Know It's Christmas?" is a charity song written in 1984 by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise money for the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. It was first recorded by Band Aid, a supergroup assembled by Geldof and Ure consisting of pop ...
" the song which kept them out of the top spot. Nevertheless, Band Aid's success meant that Michael had achieved No. 1 status in the UK within three separate entities in 1984—as a solo artist, as one half of a duo, and as part of a charity ensemble. At the end of 1985, the US ''Billboard'' charts listed "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" as the No. 3 song and "Careless Whisper" as the No. 1 song of the year.


China (1985)

In March 1985, Wham! took a break from recording to embark on a lengthy world tour, including a ground-breaking 10-day visit to China, the first by a Western pop group. The China excursion was a publicity scheme devised by
Simon Napier-Bell Simon Robert Napier-Bell (born 22 April 1939) is an English record producer, music manager, author and journalist. At different times, he has managed artists as diverse as the Yardbirds, John's Children, Marc Bolan, Japan, London, Sinéad O'Co ...
(one of their two managers;
Jazz Summers Gordon "Jazz" Summers (15 March 1944 – 14 August 2015) was a British music manager. He managed acts such as Snow Patrol, the Verve, Scissor Sisters and Klaxons. Alongside Simon Napier-Bell, he co-managed Wham! and is credited with having enabl ...
being the other). It began with a concert at the Peoples' Gymnasium in Beijing in front of 12,000 people. They also played a concert in front of 5,000 in Canton. The two concerts were played without compensation. Wham!'s visit to China attracted huge media attention across the world. Napier-Bell later admitted that he used cunning tactics to sabotage the efforts of rock band
Queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...
to be the first to play in China: he made two brochures for the Chinese authorities; one featuring Wham! fans as pleasant middle-class youngsters and one portraying Queen lead singer
Freddie Mercury Freddie Mercury (born Farrokh Bulsara; 5 September 1946 – 24 November 1991) was a British singer and songwriter who achieved global fame as the lead vocalist and pianist of the rock band Queen (band), Queen. Regarded as one of the gre ...
in typically flamboyant poses. The Chinese opted for Wham!. British director
Lindsay Anderson Lindsay Gordon Anderson (17 April 1923 – 30 August 1994) was a British feature-film, theatre and documentary director, film critic, and leading light of the Free Cinema movement and of the British New Wave. He is most widely remembered fo ...
was engaged to accompany Wham! to China and make a documentary film about the visit. Anderson called his one-hour and 18 minute film ''If You Were There''. In the final stages of editing, Anderson was dismissed by Wham!'s management, the editing team quit, and the film was re-edited, renamed and released as '' Wham! in China: Foreign Skies''. According to a 2006 interview with ''The Independent'', Andy Stephens, manager for Michael, said that the film nderson's versionwas simply not good enough to be shown in public: "It's a dreadful film ... It's 20 years old and it's rubbish. Why on earth should we allow it to be shown?" However, after viewing it in 2008, critic and journalist John Harris described it as "a rich, poetic, panoramic portrait of China's strangeness to the eyes of outsiders".


Live Aid (1985)

Sporting a beard, Michael appeared with Ridgeley onstage at
Live Aid Live Aid was a two-venue benefit concert and music-based fundraising initiative held on Saturday, 13 July 1985. The event was organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise further funds for relief of the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia, a m ...
on 13 July 1985 (although they did not perform as Wham!). Michael sang "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" with
Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, songwriter and pianist. His music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry, and his songwriting partnership with l ...
, while Ridgeley joined
Kiki Dee Pauline Matthews (born 6 March 1947), better known by her stage name Kiki Dee, is an English pop singer. Known for her blue-eyed soul vocals, she was the first female singer from the UK to sign with Motown's Tamla Records. Dee is best known f ...
in the row of backing singers. In November, Wham! released the single " I'm Your Man" which went to No. 1 in the UK charts. Around this time, Ridgeley began a relationship with
Keren Woodward Keren Jane Woodward (born 2 April 1961) is an English singer/songwriter and, with Sara Dallin and Siobhan Fahey, a founding member of the girl group Bananarama. In 1986, the trio reached number one on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 with their ve ...
of
Bananarama Bananarama is an English pop group formed in London in 1980. The group, originally a trio, consisted of friends Sara Dallin, Siobhan Fahey, and Keren Woodward. Fahey left the group in 1988 and was replaced by Jacquie O'Sullivan until 1991, when ...
, and also took up the hobby of rally driving. "
Last Christmas "Last Christmas" is a song by British pop duo Wham!. Written and produced by George Michael, it was released on 3 December 1984 via CBS Records internationally and as a double A-side via Epic Records with " Everything She Wants" in several Eur ...
" was re-issued for the festive season and again made the UK Top 10, peaking at No. 6, while Michael took up offers he was starting to receive to add his voice to other artists' songs. He performed backing vocals for
David Cassidy David Bruce Cassidy (April 12, 1950 – November 21, 2017) was an American actor and musician. He was best known for his role as Keith Partridge in the 1970s musical-sitcom ''The Partridge Family''. After completing high school, Cassidy purs ...
("The Last Kiss"), and also for Elton John on his successful singles "
Nikita Nikita may refer to: * Nikita (given name), people with the given name, including variants * Nikita, Crimea, a town in Ukraine * Nikita the Tanner, a character in East Slavic folklore Film and television *''Little Nikita'', a 1988 film * ''La Femm ...
" (UK No. 3) and " Wrap Her Up" (UK No. 12), on which he sang co-lead vocals.


Break-up (1986)

Michael was keen to create music targeted at a more sophisticated adult market rather than the duo's primarily teenage audience, and therefore, he and Ridgeley officially announced the break-up of Wham! in the spring of 1986. Before going their separate ways, a farewell single "
The Edge of Heaven "The Edge of Heaven" is a song by English pop duo Wham!, released on Epic Records in 1986. It was written and produced by George Michael, one half of the duo, and was promoted in advance as Wham!'s farewell single. History With the known desire ...
", and a greatest hits double album titled '' The Final'' would be forthcoming, along with a farewell concert at London's
Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium, currently branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE Limited, EE for sponsorship reasons, is an association football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Sta ...
also entitled The Final. Announcing the break-up, Michael said: "I think it should be the most amicable split in pop history." The farewell single reached No. 1 in June 1986. " Where Did Your Heart Go?" was the group's final single in the United States. The song was a cover of a
Was (Not Was) Was (Not Was) is an American band founded in 1979 in Detroit, Michigan, by David Weiss and Don Fagenson, who adopted the stage names David Was and Don Was. Their song catalog features an eclectic mix of pop and rock styles, often featuring g ...
song. While ''The Final'' was the duo's last album release, it was not released in North America, Instead, Columbia released a pared down album called '' Music from the Edge of Heaven'' with some alternate tracks from The Final. At Wembley Stadium on 28 June 1986, Wham! bid goodbye to their fans and each other with an emotional embrace at the end of its final concert. 72,000 people attended the eight-hour event, which included support artists, on a scorching hot day in London. The duo had been together for five years, selling over 28 million records and 15 million singles. ''Foreign Skies'', the documentary of their tour of China, received its world premiere as part of the festivities.


Post-Wham! and Michael's death

In January 1991, Ridgeley joined Michael on stage for a few songs at the
encore An encore is an additional performance given by performers at the conclusion of a show or concert, usually in response to extended applause from the audience.Lalange Cochrane, in ''Oxford Companion to Music'', Alison Latham, ed., Oxford Universi ...
of his performance at the
Rock in Rio Rock in Rio is a biennial Brazilian multi-day music festival held at City of Rock in Rio de Janeiro. It later branched into other locations such as Lisbon, Madrid and Las Vegas. Ten incarnations of the festival have been held in Rio de Janeir ...
event at the
Maracanã Stadium Maracanã Stadium (, ; named after the Maracanã River), officially known as Jornalista Mário Filho Stadium (, ; , named after Mário Filho), is an association football stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Located in the Maracanã neighbor ...
in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...
, the owners of CBS Records, released a greatest hits compilation in 1997 called '' The Best of Wham!: If You Were There...''. Sony released another compilation in 2023 called '' The Singles: Echoes from the Edge of Heaven''. On 21 November 2009, there was a Wham!-themed night on television's ''
The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–200 ...
'' in the UK. Michael later appeared on the show's final episode, performing a duet of "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" with finalist and eventual winner
Joe McElderry Joseph McElderry (; born 16 June 1991) is an English singer and songwriter. He won the The X Factor (British series 6), sixth series of ''The X Factor (British TV series), The X Factor'' in 2009. His first single "The Climb (Joe McElderry song), ...
. In 2012, Michael said that there was no truth in speculation that he and Ridgeley were set for a Wham! reunion to mark the 30th anniversary of the group's first album. Michael died from heart and liver disease at his home in Goring-on-Thames, Oxfordshire on Christmas Day 2016, at the age of 53. Upon hearing of Michael's death, Ridgeley paid his respects on Twitter, saying, "Heartbroken at the loss of my beloved friend Yog." Michael was posthumously inducted into the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), also simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and the ...
as a solo artist in November 2023, with Ridgeley as the induction presenter.


Discography

* ''
Fantastic Fantastic or Fantastik may refer to: Music * ''Fantastic'' (Toy-Box album) * ''Fantastic'' (Wham! album) * '' Fan-Tas-Tic (Vol. 1)'', an album by Slum Village * '' Fantastic, Vol. 2'', an album by Slum Village * ''Fantastic'' (EP), an EP by ...
'' (1983) * ''
Make It Big ''Make It Big'' is the second studio album by English pop duo Wham!, released in 1984. In comparison to their earlier work, Wham! (George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley) had more control over the album's production and Michael would also be credit ...
'' (1984) * '' Music from the Edge of Heaven'' (1986)


Filmography

* '' Wham! in China: Foreign Skies'' (1986) * ''
Wham! Wham! were an English pop duo formed in Bushey in 1981 consisting of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. They were one of the most successful pop acts during the 1980s, selling more than 30 million certified records worldwide from 1982 to ...
'' (2023) * ''Wham!: Last Christmas Unwrapped'' (2024)


Tours or shows

*
Club Fantastic Tour The Club Fantastic Tour (also advertised as the Club Fantastic '83 Tour) was the debut concert tour by English pop duo Wham!, launched in support of their first studio album ''Fantastic'' (1983). It was sponsored by Fila sportswear and spanned t ...
(1983) *
The Big Tour The Big Tour was the second concert tour by English pop duo Wham!, launched in support of their multi-platinum second studio album ''Make It Big'', which sold over six million units in the US alone. The tour spanned 4 months between December 1984 ...
(1984–1985) * Whamamerica! (1985) * The Final (1986)


References


External links

* * * {{Authority control English pop music duos Dance-pop groups Brit Award winners Musical groups established in 1981 Musical groups disestablished in 1986 Entertainers from Bushey Musical groups from Hertfordshire Columbia Records artists Epic Records artists Innervision Records artists Sony Music UK artists 1981 establishments in England 1986 disestablishments in England English male musical duos Second British Invasion artists