Tonight the Music Seems So Loud: The Meaning of George Michael

by Sathnam Sanghera

In his brilliantly original Tonight the Music Seems so Loud , bestselling author Sathnam Sanghera portrays the extraordinary life, and times, of one of Britain's most beloved musical icons – George Michael.

Through the lens of George Michael's life, Sathnam Sanghera, the prize-winning author of Empireland, writes a kaleidoscopic story of immigration; homophobia; fame; the 80s and 90s; creative and musical genius; the tabloids; addiction; obsessive fans; shame; and why the love for George Michael has only grown in the years since his tragic death on Christmas Day 2016.

Genres: Nonfiction, Music, Biography, Audiobook

288 pages, Hardcover

Published June 2, 2026

About the author

Sathnam Sanghera was born to Punjabi parents in the West Midlands in 1976, attended Wolverhampton Grammar School and graduated from Christ’s College, Cambridge with a first class degree in English Language and Literature in 1998. Before becoming a writer he (among other things) worked at a burger chain, a hospital laundry, a market research firm, a sewing factory and a literacy project in New York.

Between 1998 and 2006 he was at The Financial Times, where he worked (variously) as a news reporter in the UK and the US, specialised in writing about the media industries, worked across the paper as Chief Feature Writer, and wrote an award-winning weekly business column. Sathnam joined The Times as a columnist and feature writer in 2007, reviews cars for Management Today and has presented a number of radio documentaries for the BBC.

Sathnam’s first book, The Boy With The Topknot: A Memoir of Love, Secrets and Lies in Wolverhampton, was shortlisted for the 2008 Costa Biography Award, the 2009 PEN/Ackerley Prize and named 2009 Mind Book of the Year. His novel, Marriage Material, has been shortlisted for a 2014 South Bank Sky Arts Award and a 2013 Costa Book Award, been longlisted for the 2014 Desmond Elliot Prize, picked by The Sunday Times, The Observer and Metro as one of the novels of 2013, and is being developed as a multi-part TV drama by Kudos.

He has won numerous prizes for his journalism, including Article of the Year in the 2005 Management Today Writing Awards, Newspaper Feature of the Year in the 2005 Workworld Media Awards, HR Journalist of the Year in the 2006 and 2009 Watson Wyatt Awards for Excellence and the accolade of Young Journalist of the Year at the British Press Awards in 2002.

He was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Letters for services to journalism by The University of Wolverhampton in September 2009 and a President’s Medal by the Royal College of Psychiatrists in 2010, while GQ Magazine named him as one of “The Men of Next 25 years” in 2013, with writer Jonathan Coe saying that “whether he’s writing autobiography or fiction, Sathnam is busy carving out his own literary niche – in the multicultural British Midlands – which he explores with incredible grace, generosity and humour”.

The Boy With The Topknot, was originally published by Penguin in hardback as If You Don’t Know Me By Now. He is trustee and board chair for Creative Access, a charity which helps find internships in the creative industries for talented young people from under-represented backgrounds. He lives in London.

Reviews

[Gayle (OutsmartYourShelf) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been a fan of George Michael & his music since I was about ten years old. I don't think any other music artist or band comes anywhere close in importance to me, therefore, I was both excited & wary of reading a book about him as sometimes stars don't live up to the fantasy. Here, the author examines the life of George Michael but rather than a straightforward biography, Sanghera focuses on topics such as George Michael's immigrant background, the price of fame, homophobia, the media, & addiction as well as the process of songwriting.

It's extremely well done & written in a very personal & heartfelt way yet it is also thoroughly researched & well-referenced. There were some things I couldn't relate to as I've never found it embarrassing to be a fan & I've always considered George Michael to be outrageously absurdly talented & underrated with regards to his songwriting. So although there is a risk with reading books about people you admire, this book is in turns joyful & poignant, celebratory & yet soul-searching, & it pays a beautiful tribute to the complicated man behind the superstar that was George Michael.
4.5 stars (rounded up)

SUMMARY:
Research: Excellent - Thorough & well-referenced.
Writing Style: Very Good - Written in a very personal, heartfelt way.
Enjoyment Level: High - In turns joyful & poignant, celebratory & yet soul-searching, this book pays a beautiful tribute to the complicated man behind the icon.

My thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Pan Macmillan/Picador, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have loved George Michael ever since I first saw him on TV with Wham!. I was a fan from that moment and blessed to grow up with his music and see him live several times.

As an adult, at a mindfulness group session, we were asked what music we tap into when we want to feel uplifted. My answer was George Michael. Another woman in the group laughed at my choice. She couldn’t stop laughing. I didn’t understand why she found that funny. I wrote it off as a generational gap. She was younger than me and maybe just didn’t know?

It wasn’t until reading this book that I got insight into possibly why. I didn’t realize there was any shame in being a George Michael fan. I never felt any. In high school people would often ask me, “Why do you like him? He’s gay.” My response was always, “He can be as gay as he wants. It doesn’t matter.” In the evangelical South of the US, I’m sure it did. But for me, it never did and never will.

I was aware of the stories and the headlines, but I never really thought about how deeply troubled he might have been. What he created, and what he left us with is so beautiful that I never thought of Michael in the context of an addict or someone depressed. This book brought it all into focus. I do now listen to his songs with the context of this book in mind.

This book also made me realize that if being a George Michael or Wham! fan was ever seen as a joke, that says more about what people project onto him than about who he was. There is no shame in being a fan of someone whose music holds you up when the world doesn’t. And there is certainly no shame in writing a book that treats his story with the respect it deserves.

[Martin Southard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having previously read Andrew Ridgeley’s Wham! George & Me and thoroughly enjoyed it, I was keen to pick up this book and discover a different perspective on George Michael’s life and legacy. As someone who has listened to his music for many years, I was interested to see how Sathnam Sanghera would approach such a well-known figure.

What immediately stood out was that this isn’t a conventional biography. Rather than simply working through the key events of George Michael’s life, Sanghera uses his story to examine broader themes such as celebrity culture, identity, media scrutiny and changing attitudes within British society. It gives the book a depth that sets it apart from many music biographies.

While the author’s admiration for George Michael is evident, he doesn’t shy away from discussing the more challenging periods of his life. The result is a portrayal that feels fair, considered and human. I also appreciated the attention given to George’s songwriting, creativity and determination, qualities that sometimes risk being overshadowed by the tabloid headlines that followed him throughout his career.

The book is highly readable and engaging, and the personal touches from the author add warmth without distracting from the subject matter.

Overall, this is a thoughtful and insightful read that offers both fresh perspectives and plenty for long-time fans to appreciate. An absorbing exploration of an extraordinary artist whose influence continues to be felt today.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for providing this advanced copy

[Rae · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

I <3 George Michael

[Dana · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a big George Michael fan, I had high hopes for this biography. I was disappointed. The author got far too into the weeds of little details like how many times a sax solo had to be recorded and re-recorded. He dwelt on small details too much. And, because I listened to the audiobook, I was TERRIBLY disappointed that there were no snippets of songs, or interviews, or live performances. What a wasted opportunity. This felt very much like a vanity project, created simply because the author liked George Michael when he was a teenager. I did not learn anything new.

[Bookguide]

My copy has just arrived. I thought the light glinting off the sunglasses on the cover was a bit annoying as flashes of light can trigger a visual migraine so I can’t read for half an hour. Boo! But then I held the book up and looked straight into the sunglasses and… wow! Rainbows!

[Sarah Burr · Rating 5 out of 5]

“To acknowledge the darkness is not to put out the light”. Absolutely brilliant biography. Full of love and honesty. Adored it

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting nonlinear approach to a biography of a fascinating human being who I adored in the 80s like millions of other teenage girls. I really hope someone out there counts the number of times Prince was referenced. It has to be somewhere between 30 to 40 times. Intriguing read!

[CadmanReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review to follow

[Daniel Sevitt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was very much looking forward to reading this once it was announced. I love a serious look at popular culture and especially one that I am so personally invested in. In the first 20 pages of the book Sanghera goes to see where George first performed a version of Careless Whisper in his father's restaurant... about a ten minute walk from my home on the way to the Tube. Left at the lights just past Handel's Smithy where that other Edgware-centered composer was inspired to write "The Harmonious Blacksmith."

This is a great review of Michael's career that tries a little too hard to avoid hagiography. I can't imagine there are still George Michael fans who believe he was without flaws. If anything his flaws are what make us love him more, a decade after he left. The author lingers too long on his own ambivalence about loving George. There might have been a time in the UK when it was terribly uncool to like George Michael, but I think those days are long past. I'm guessing it will always be harder to be a Morrissey fan or even a Noel Gallagher one.

I don't know if this is the definitive work on George Michael but it's good enough and always an engaging read even if we have to hear for the 10th time about his perfectionism, his drug addiction, and his depression. There was nothing particularly revelatory here. The joy is in having someone take seriously the fun you always took seriously.

[iCod · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Sathnam's writing, and laughed a lot at many of the instances that directly involved him. I found some chapters more relevant to me than others because I'm definitely not such a fan as he is!
The ones to do with addiction and homophobia were really great.
Definitely made me think more about fame and about how much we're affected by popular music of our teens

[CatReader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sathnam Sanghera is a British journalist, writer, and somewhat abashed George Michael fan; his 2026 biography of Michael, Tonight the Music Seems So Loud, is a nuanced look at the complicated life and legacy of the late singer. George Michael (1963-2016), born Georgios Panayiotou to a Greek Cypriot immigrant father and an English mother, rose to fame in the early 80s as half of the teen pop duo Wham! (alongside Andrew Ridgeley), before going solo in the late 1980s and having a storied but controversial career.

The book opens with a hilarious anecdote of a delightful British cultural phenomenon called Whamaggedon, a seemingly futile quest to avoid hearing Wham's original version of the Christmas tune Last Christmas from December 1-24 each year, while simultaneously attempting to take your competition out by rickrolling them into hearing the song. The dozens of cover versions of Last Christmas by other acts are still safe to listen to, though. (For what it's worth, Last Christmas -- any version -- is probably my second least favorite holiday tune, topped only by Santa Baby -- nothing personal against Wham.)

Though I wouldn't consider myself a fan of George Michael (my only familiarity with him were bad press stories published in the '00s when I followed the British music scene), I did appreciate the nuance and care with which Sanghera told Michael's story. Michael could be both generous and controlling, both an advocate for the LGBTQ+ community and someone who for years wanted to keep his own sexuality private for family reasons before being publicly outed, and his later years featured battles with addiction and the law that were both sad and jokes he made at his own expense. I also found Sanghera's relationship with his fandom of Michael fascinating; as a teen and young adult of first generation Punjabi descent, he wasn't exactly in Michael's target demographic. Once Sangera became an adult, he never met Michael personally (despite several opportunities arising later in his life), and seemed reluctant to talk to his friends and business associates about his fandom/fascination for various reasons that I find understandable (I also don't talk to my business associates about my music taste!). Still, the book can be read as a love letter (or at least, a strong letter of appreciation) to Michael. I wish there were more similar biographies of other pop singers of this and later eras, as I would prefer these to the biographies that the singers themselves may write.

My statistics:
Book 123 for 2026
Book 2429 cumulatively

[Isabella Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

I grew up in a family who adored George Michael. I’ll never forget my aunt almost falling to her knees in tears on Christmas Day 2016 when we heard that he had died. As an adult, I’ve found myself drawn to him even more, not only because I genuinely believe he was one of the world’s greatest musical geniuses, deserving of a place alongside Michael Jackson and Madonna in the pantheon of 1980s icons, but because of what he stood for.

George wasn’t just an extraordinary musician; he was a deeply spiritual, thoughtful and creative man who used his platform to speak out on social issues at a time when many celebrities simply didn’t. This book explores that side of him brilliantly. It delves into his identity as a gay man and how his own journey inspired others to embrace who they truly were. It also examines his outspoken opposition to the 2003 Iraq War, showing how his convictions shaped the person he became. Sathnam Sanghera makes a compelling case that what made George so special was that he was so much more than the good-looking Greek boy from Bushey with the perfect hair, hoop earring and day-glo shorts, dancing around to Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go.

Part of me wanted to put the book down when it reached the darker chapters of George’s life. Reading about the struggles of his final years was genuinely difficult. But I’m glad Sathnam chose to end the story on such a loving and compassionate note. It serves as a reminder that George’s legacy is defined not by those difficult years, but by the joy, generosity and humanity he gave to the world. He set a benchmark not only for musical talent but also for quiet acts of charity and kindness that only became widely known after his death.

I also loved the way Sathnam reflects on George through the lens of his own experience as the son of immigrants growing up in London. Those personal parallels added another layer to the book, showing how George’s story resonated far beyond music.

This is an essential read for George Michael fans, but it’s also a fascinating portrait of an extraordinary life lived by a truly remarkable man

[Kirsten · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ich erinnere mich an George Michael hauptsächlich als Sänger von Wham. Der Band, dessen Song "Last Christmas " ich jedes Jahr an Weihnachten versuche, zu vermeiden solange es geht. Bis zu diesem Buch war mir nicht bewusst, dass es einen Begriff dafür gibt: Whamageddon. Für mich ist es das perfekte Wort, um George Michael zu beschreiben. Der geniale Künstler, der eben so viel mehr ist als nur dieses eine Lied, das aufgrund der Frequenz, mit der es in der Weihnachtszeit gespielt wird, fast ein wenig ins Lächerliche gezogen wird.

Sathnam Sanghera zeigt in seinem Buch genau diese Gegensätze. Nach außen der Sonnyboy, der immer nur Musik machen wollte und dessen Traum schon früh wahr wurde. Der auf Titelblättern und im Fernsehen und Radio fast zu präsent war. Bei dem der schöne Schein irgendwann durch Skandale und den Kampf gegen die seine Plattenfirma getrübt wurde.

Den Meldungen über George Michael zu entkommen war schwer, selbst für jemand, der einen anderen Musikgeschmack hat. Aber gerade, weil ich mich nicht für ihn und seine Musik interessiert habe, habe ich nur das mitgenommen, was in den Medien stand. Sathnam Sanghera erzählt von dem, was sich hinter den Kulissen abgespielt hat. So sehe ich einiges, was ich über George Michael erfahren habe, vielleicht etwas kritischer den damaligen Schlagzeilen gegenüber.

Das Buch erzählt nicht nur die Geschichte des Künstlers, sondern auch, wie sich das Leben des Autors um den Künstler gedreht hat. Die Bewunderung kann man deutlich herauslesen, aber sie wirkt nicht übertrieben. Mich hat es daran erinnert, dass ich viel mehr Musik von und mit George Michael kenne und auch mag, als mir bis zu dieser Lektüre bewusst war.

[Mo Chapter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like many people of my generation, I grew up with George Michael's music forming part of the soundtrack to my life. From WHAM! to his solo career, his songs are tied to countless memories, so I was immediately drawn to Tonight the Music Seems So Loud.
What I loved most about this book is that Sathnam Sanghera has written far more than a straightforward biography. While George Michael's life and career are central to the story, the book also explores fame, identity, politics and the changing Britain in which he lived.
Sanghera balances admiration with thoughtful analysis, looking beyond the public image to reveal a more complex and nuanced portrait of the man behind the music. Even as a longtime fan, I discovered new insights and came away with a deeper appreciation of both George Michael and his legacy.
Engaging, insightful and often moving, this is a fitting tribute to an artist whose music continues to resonate with so many people.

Full review can be found on my blog at momobookdiary

[Marguerite Stevenson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would read Sathnam Sanghera’s shopping list if I could, but thankfully he has published a new book so I don’t have to resort to such measures. Sanghera has stepped away from his role as historian of the British Empire to explore seemingly different subject: George Michael. Only you don’t have to read very far to discover that even the legendary singer George Michael cannot be separated from Empire. This book explores the many facets of George Michael, from his immigrant background, his relationship with the media’s homophobia and how he helped facilitate changes in the societal attitude to homosexuality, Wham!’s groundbreaking and insane visit to China, Michael’s creativity, obsession, and genius, and how the same qualities that made him so great also drove him to substance abuse and ultimately, his early end. Like many, I love George Michael’s music, but I had no idea that he was such a force. Sanghera’s narration shines through the book, and the reader can feel that they are alongside him on his quest to discover who the star really was.

Sanghera writes about him honestly, refusing to ignore Michael’s uglier qualities, and he treats him with respect – there is so much compassion and empathy in this book. Like Sanghera, I wish someone had said to Michael, “You are enough. Not because of your achievements, or who the world thinks you are. Because you exist.” I hadn’t expected to finish a book about a pop star in tears, but I did. The media was terribly unfair to George Michael through his life; it was about time that he was publicly given the understanding he deserved - not just as a musical genius, but as a human being like the rest of us. Bravo.

You can read this review and more here:
https://open.substack.com/pub/dispatc...

[Rowena Macdonald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyable. I'm not a major GM fan but he does remind me pleasantly of my childhood. And I always like Sathnam Sanghera's writing. I'm only knocking off a star because I didn't love this as much as Empireland, which was, to my mind, a bigger achievement. This book is very good, but it didn't quite capture various atmospheres I associate with GM and that sort of aspirational, nouveau riche, outer edge of London vibe. Some chapters were better than others. Eg the one about celebrity was very good. Some were a bit too concentrated on slightly dull details. Overall, I think I wanted more artiness but if you have any vague interest in GM then I'd recommend this.

[Katy Wheatley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a strange but compelling book in which Sanghera takes us on a journey through the life of George Michael. His fandom is sometimes at odds with his desire to fact check and create a realistic, fair picture of Michael's life. I admire his willingness to look at some of the less lovely and appealing parts of Michael's life and the line he treads between reporting what he finds and still being respectful of the man and his legacy. Sometimes it means that the book is not particularly uplifting but it is always real.

[Rach Peterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book immensely— celebratory, painful in places, and full of truth.
GM has been part of my life since I was six, listening to Bad Boys in 1982, and his music has stayed with me ever since. Sathnam honours both the brilliance and the vulnerability that shaped GM’s artistry.
We may wish for more music from GM, but this book reminds us just how precious the songs we have from this amazing singer-songwriter truly are.

[Dawn McGill Dalrymple · Rating 5 out of 5]

Being a long time Wham and George fan I knew I had to read this one! While Andrew's memior is more nostalgic with warm memories this is nothing like that. This is George flaws and all. Fave line:
"This, if I had met him at the time, is what I would have said to him. It's what I've tried to say to every addict in my life. You are enough. Not because of your achievements, or who the world thinks you are. Because you exist."

[Mandi Dunkley · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had high hopes for this with it being about the legend that is George Michael but I was sorely disappointed with it. I found it dull, repetitive and not saying much at all. Struggled to finish it, found the writer kept saying the same things over and over without saying much at all.

[Lisa Hoppe · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this because of the title. And I remember blasting the Faith cassette in my car in high school. I didn’t know much about George Michael otherwise, so this was an interesting read. Not terrible, not fabulous. I mostly listened so I may have missed some of it.

[Elizabeth Winterbottom · Rating 3 out of 5]

Incredibly dull and repetitive. I listened to it on audiobook and the narrator was terrible and no doubt added to the dullness. Sounded like a BBC newsreader. Big GM fan but this was so disappointing.

[Andrew Wesley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Listened on audio, voice seemed a terrible AI robot - but, book was great!

[Lais]

“what a legacy to still be delighting people a decade after your death, to the extent they can’t help but dance”

[Rebecca Larsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A perfect marriage of biography, social commentary and reflection, Tonight The Music Seems So Loud is just a wonderful book about a wonderful man who was equal part genius and tormented man.

I absolutely ate this book up. Having been a Wham! fan in my youth (yes, it was my first big concert), I thought I had a handle on George Michael. I was wrong. Such a great lesson in what we don't know is happening behind the scenes, how our fandom affects its target and the factors that lead to Michael's various behaviours across decades.

Add in history surrounding the negativity surrounding being gay in the 1980s and the squashing of information regarding HIV/AIDS this book taught me more than I needed to know, all written in an accessible and engaging format.

AND be prepared to go down a George Michael live performance wormhole on Youtube :)

[Marguerite Stevenson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would read Sathnam Sanghera’s shopping list if I could, but thankfully he has published a new book so I don’t have to resort to such measures. Sanghera has stepped away from his role as historian of the British Empire to explore seemingly different subject: George Michael. Only you don’t have to read very far to discover that even the legendary singer George Michael cannot be separated from Empire. This book explores the many facets of George Michael, from his immigrant background, his relationship with the media’s homophobia and how he helped facilitate changes in the societal attitude to homosexuality, Wham!’s groundbreaking and insane visit to China, Michael’s creativity, obsession, and genius, and how the same qualities that made him so great also drove him to substance abuse and ultimately, his early end. Like many, I love George Michael’s music, but I had no idea that he was such a force. Sanghera’s narration shines through the book, and the reader can feel that they are alongside him on his quest to discover who the star really was.

Sanghera writes about him honestly, refusing to ignore Michael’s uglier qualities, and he treats him with respect – there is so much compassion and empathy in this book. Like Sanghera, I wish someone had said to Michael, “You are enough. Not because of your achievements, or who the world thinks you are. Because you exist.” I hadn’t expected to finish a book about a pop star in tears, but I did. The media was terribly unfair to George Michael through his life; it was about time that he was publicly given the understanding he deserved - not just as a musical genius, but as a human being like the rest of us. Bravo.

You can read this review and more here: https://open.substack.com/pub/dispatc...

[Pudsey Recommends · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tonight the Music Seems So Loud is everything I wanted from a George Michael biography and then some. Extraordinary, meticulously researched, genuinely entertaining, and often unexpectedly poignant.

Sathnam Sanghera's passion for George Michael is vivid on every page, but what makes the book so compelling is that it is never simply a celebration of its subject. Sanghera uses Michael's life to explore questions about race, fame, creativity, politics, philanthropy, and what secrecy does to the soul.

There are countless fascinating details throughout. George Michael wrote "Careless Whisper" at seventeen. Seventeen. What were you doing at seventeen? There are stories about Wham!'s groundbreaking tour of China, Michael's collaborations and activism, his extraordinary generosity, and the many contradictions that made him such a compelling figure.

Particularly fascinating is Sanghera's exploration of Michael as what he calls the "acceptable honkey" in a music industry that often racialised genres and audiences, opening up wider conversations about Black music, cultural exchange, and belonging. As someone interested in stories of migration and identity, I found these chapters especially illuminating.

One of the most affecting aspects of the book is its exploration of George Michael's queer self-discovery and the years he spent negotiating desire, fame, and public expectation. Sanghera traces how some of Michael's most powerful songs emerged from feelings that could not yet be openly expressed, while never losing sight of the damage that secrecy inflicted.

Sanghera writes thoughtfully about the impact of internalised homophobia, the AIDS crisis, and the pressures of fame, while never reducing Michael to his sexuality alone. Instead, he presents a portrait of an artist whose longing for freedom, honesty, love, and self-acceptance became inseparable from his creativity. Some of the book's most poignant moments come when Michael reflects on wishing he had been able to live more openly at a younger age.

Running through the book is Sanghera's regret that he never got to meet his hero. That thread gives the biography an unexpected emotional weight. It made me think about the old saying, "don't meet your heroes", and whether some part of us wants to preserve the myth rather than risk encountering the person. What do we lose when we keep that distance, and what do we protect?

Part cultural history, part personal reflection, and part tribute to one of Britain's greatest artists, this is a moving, funny, and deeply thought-provoking book. I finished it wanting to listen to George Michael's entire catalogue all over again.

Thank you so much to Picador Books and Sathnam Sanghera for the arc

#pudseyrecommends

[Stephen the Bookworm · Rating 5 out of 5]

To a generation of music fans, the words "Tonight the Music Seems So Loud " will instantly trigger memories from slow dances at discos, family weddings or walkman listenings of the 1980s; of course they are lyrics from Careless Whisper by George Michael and this fascinating book by Sathnam Sanghera will certainly open up a floodgate of nostalgia but this biography is much more than a trip down memory lane about one of the most iconic singer-song writers of the last half century.

Having previously read Empireland and Empireworld by Sanghera, being intrigued by this latest work is an understatement. As a self-confessed lifelong fan, Sangehra has produced a biography that is something slightly different; a decade after the death of George Michael, he digs deeper to explore the story of the man and his music but also his legacy - his battles with media empires, politics and sexual identity that are now regarded as pivotal points in cultural change- the "meaning " of George Michael.

Biographies are always subjective and Sanghera challenges his own fandom from his youth until present day to explore the highs and lows of George Michael in particular his struggles with celebrity - he was treated abysmally by the press; the eternal challenge to compose new music - blighted by the pressure of fame, perfectionism and addiction but also the stories behind many of his big hits that are now classics that every one- fan or not- know. This is not a saccharine aficionado read.

The musical gift he has left us is incredible but Sanghera also reflects upon George Michael's philanthropy and just as important his fearlessness to battle onwards where many would have crumbled. This is also the story of a man who wanted fame but still wanted to stay as grounded as possible with family and friends.

There are so many hypothetical "George Michael could have..." scenarios that many singer-song writers have followed as their careers progressed in later years- endless Greatest Hits tours; musicals etc but this was not to be and maybe that's why George Michael like other performers such as Prince , Whitney or Bowie will eternally be icons as they didn't have that time to change the narrative and forever leave us with questions but more importantly incredible music.

This is a book for fans of George Michael and his music but also a book about cultural changes since the early 1980s - the evolution of the music business, sexual politics and identity and the pressures of fame in a past where there were global stars. Ultimately, George Michael's music will forever be part of many people's lives and with new generations discovering his catalogue then his legacy will live on .

Fascinating, questioning- the research is immense- and very readable. (and as a teenager in the early 80s, highly enjoyable, nostalgic and touching- his music has been a backdrop /soundtrack at many pivotal moments)

5 out of 5 given as this is an unflinching read that consistently questions but ultimately celebrates.

Recommended


Thank you to Picador books and NetGalley for the advance copy for an honest review

[Connie Kronlokken]

A character study which considers the historical context.