George Michael was known during the heyday of his career as an artist who revealed very little about his private life and wanted to keep it that way. This came to an end during his lifetime due to some scandals, but after his death we learned even more. Including a loved one who dropped out of school after Michael’s death and a new, unauthorized biography that comes out this week.
Despite his frantic efforts, Michael’s private life is never completely private. But things take a turn for the worse when he’s busted in the 1990s for immorality in a toilet. From that moment on, his drug use has been a regular topic of conversation. Even after his death, he continues to make the tabloids with an ex taking him down on social media.
Michael was one of the greatest artists of his generation in the 1980s and 1990s. This means that everyone wants to know everything about their love life. The singer, who broke through as a member of the duo Wham! and then scored big solo hits like Careless Whisper, Faith in Freedom! ’90, has different relationships with women. But even then there is a lot of speculation about the sexual orientation of the pop star.
Still, he keeps his homosexuality to himself for a long time and he doesn’t just do it to protect his career. The singer is especially afraid of the reaction of his family, especially his father. Finally, in 1998, Michael is outed in a scandal, which also involves the police.
George Michael was in a relationship with Kenny Goss from 1996 to 2009.
George Michael was in a relationship with Kenny Goss from 1996 to 2009. Photo: Getty Images
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The toilet scandal
Michael is arrested on April 7, 1998 for indecency in a public restroom in a Beverly Hills park. The singer says he was provoked by an undercover police officer to take out his genitals. According to Michael, he only did this after the agent did the same.
The agent is suing him for these comments and for the music video accompanying the song Outside† In that clip, the singer can be seen in a men’s restroom where several models are walking around in police uniforms. Michael himself also wears one.
The incident gets a lot of media attention and leads to Michael’s official coming out as gay in a television interview. The singer is currently in a relationship with Kenny Goss. In 2006 he was caught again in London for cruising (having sex with other men in public). He then tells in an interview that he does this a few times a year and sees no problem with it.
Driving under the influence
In the years that follow, Michael is arrested several times for drug possession and driving under the influence. For example, cannabis and cocaine are found on him several times.
In 2006 he was arrested for blocking the road at a traffic light. The singer turns out to be under the influence and is not allowed to drive for two years. In 2010 he crashes his car into the wall of a shop. This time, the singer has to go to jail for a month.
(Ex-) boyfriend throws mud
Fadi Fawaz was the last to have a love affair with Michael. It is not entirely clear whether the two were still officially together at the time of the singer’s death. Fawaz himself says that he found him dead in his home on Christmas Day 2016.
The next of kin of Michael want little to do with Fawaz. He is also not included in the will of the singer. This causes problems after Michael’s death. Fawaz argues with the family about the inheritance and is actually not welcome at the funeral. It even leads to his arrest in 2020 when he breaks into Michael’s home. He then claims that it is actually his house.
Fawaz also has doubts about Michael’s autopsy. According to him, the artist did not die of natural causes, but would have committed suicide after several attempts. Fawaz ensures that more than five years after his death, Michael is still in the tabloids. He writes about Michael’s drug use and weekends he is said to have spent with escorts.
Difficult relationship with father
Author James Gavin has written an unauthorized biography about Michael this year, which reveals even more details about the singer’s private life. According to Gavin, many of Michael’s personal problems can be traced back to his difficult relationship with his father. For example, many of his insecurities and his long-delayed coming out are due to this.
The book also pays attention to Michael’s music, especially the album released in 1996 Older† He dedicates this record to his first friend Anselmo Feleppa, who died in 1993, who died of AIDS-related health problems. According to Gavin, Michael was more open about his life in his music for the observant listener than was claimed.
“I was touched by how sad and raw the record is, and I knew that George shares his diary on that album. He had lost the love of his life. That was not publicly known, but there were hints, because the record is dedicated to Anselmo Feleppa. It wasn’t hard to read between the lines and see what this person meant to him.”
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