George Michael By: Márcia Schwarz Perel

I have been writing for a while and by now you know who my favorite musical person EVER happens to be.

George Michael just turned 50 years old on June 25^th, and to celebrate this achievement, I write about him with all my love 

and devotion.

At the WHAM! blog, I told you how I met and fell in love with George. Now I will tell you what happened after.

After WHAM!, George reinvented himself musically and his looks with the release Faith (1997). The album was a huge worldwide success and one of its tracks, I Want Your Sex parts I and II were banned from radio and its video from MTV due to strong sexual contents. This did not prevent its humongous success but George still felt that he needed to be taken more seriously. In 1990, Listen Without Prejudice came out and George not only wrote all the tracks, but also played every single instrument in every song. To me, this album shows an artistic and sensitive side of George that I would only see again with the album Older.

Being a George fan living in the US and without the advances of the Internet in the 90s, was pretty hard. George, like other British musicians, is not very popular here in the US. Of course that it does not prevent them of having hard core fans, but in the beginning it was work!

In 2004, passing by Virgin Records, literally after had just arrived from Brasil, I come face to face with a sign inviting fans to not only acquire George’s new CD Patience, but also to meet him. I had the CD already (in Europe it had been released a month before) but meeting George face to face??? This was a Saturday, George would be at Virgin Records on Monday. There would be no way that I would let the opportunity to meet him escape. Thank God for the Internet, I found out that on Monday early morning he was going to be at the Today Show ( not a far walk from my house), later into the day at The View ( literally next to my house) and in the afternoon at the record store. I managed my morning around him with no success, so I decided to get early at Times Square. There I was, pregnant, waiting two hours to meet George.  Kenny, his then boyfriend, came over, took pictures with me, offered me a chair, and spent some time.  But where was George? As I got closer to him, his PR people were letting the fans know that he would just autograph the CDs and that the line had to move fast. People that know me well, know that: I NEVER wait in any lines (this was a onetime only exception), if I felt like George would have to do more than just sign, he WOULD do more that because I always find a way. I waited all my life to meet him, I would properly do so, PR liking it or not!!!!

When I came face to face with him, I told him right away where I was from (Brasil will be always dear in George’s heart). He then held my hands, hugged and kissed me and all I could say next was …. I LOVE YOU GEORGE!!!  He smiled, asked for my name, autographed my CD and thanked me for being there for him. I was in heaven. He was kind, handsome, smelled good and his voice was soothing.

I got near George again in 2008, when he toured his 25 Live concerts around the globe. The concert was going to be 6 days before my birthday at MSG (is there a better present?). There I went, by myself to see my idol. He has an amazing stage presence and it is impossible to be bored at his concerts.

George toured again two years ago, having his songs and others artist’s work covered with an orchestra. The tour was called Symphonica. It traveled all over Europe and Australia. Unfortunately George caught pneumonia towards the end of the tour and never made it to the US. After this health scare he wrote White Light, which he sang at the London Olympics Finale making the crowd go insane.

My kids already recognize his songs and my daughter does a great rendition to Everything She Wants. They were always aware of my devotion to George. My husband has to deal with it as well. It is pretty hard to even try to compete with a love that started when I was only 9 years old.

As a fanatic, I know every single lyric, every song cover ever made. I am part of his fan club and always get something special from George on the mail. He is not a perfect person, by no means no example of purity, but if you follow him on tweeter, you will discover that he is human. He tries to reply to as many tweets as soon as he gets them, he works on endless charity foundations, he is an avid animal lover, he has an amazing sense of humor. So George in essence is a simple human being, a genius composer and lyricist and my own Greek God.

Happy 50 George and may you live until 120!*    

Mazal Tov !!!!   A Jewish birthday expression – it is believed that Moses lived until 120 years old.

By: Márcia Schwarz Perel

BlaBlaBla NYC

IMAGES Márcia Schwarz Perel archive & NET

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