WHAM!

WHAM! was an English pop duo that was formed in 1981 by George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. They were one of the most successful pop acts during the 1980s.
==History==
Michael and Ridgeley met at Bushey Meads School in Bushey near the town of Watford in Hertfordshire. The two at first performed in a short-lived ska band called The Executive, alongside former school friends David (Austin) Mortimer, Andrew Leaver, Tony Bywaters, Ian Bowden, Jamie Gould, Harry Tadayon and Paul Ridgeley. https://twitter.com/ajridgeley/status/815239959309414400 When this group split, Michael and Andrew Ridgeley eventually formed Wham! 
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 at The Three Crowns in Hertfordshire, and hand him the band's demo tape. http://www.three-crowns.com/about/history
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." https://books.google.com/books?id=sk6MDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT90
The debut record to be released by the band was "Wham Rap!" in June 1982. It was a double A-side including the Social Mix and the Unsocial Mix. The record was not playlisted by BBC Radio 1 in the UK, partly because of the profanity in the Unsocial Mix. The song charted at only No. 105. https://books.google.com/books?id=GiZRCgAAQBAJ&pg=PT35
===Legal disputes with Innervision===
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". Wham! publicly denounced the release. https://books.google.com/books?id=v_IyT35pJCgC&pg=PT264 After all the legal wrangling, Innervision settled out of court. https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/the-second-coming-of-george-michael-103627/
===Switched to Epic Records===
Now signed to Epic Records, except in the US and a few other countries on Epic's sister label Columbia Records, 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", into the top ten of several countries around the world. It became their first US and UK No. 1 single, accompanied by a video of the duo with Pepsi and Shirlie, all wearing Katharine Hamnett T-shirts with the slogans "CHOOSE LIFE" and "GO GO". https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2009/jun/19/slogan-t-shirts-hamnett 
The next single from the Wham! album was "Careless Whisper", but it featured only George Michael in the music video. In certain markets, the single was promoted as "Wham! featuring George Michael", and in other markets, including the UK, it was credited to George Michael as a solo act but, unlike any Wham! single except "Wham Rap!" and "Club Tropicana", it was also co-written with Andrew Ridgeley. The song, about a remorseful two-timer, had more emotional depth than previous releases. It reached No. 1, selling over 1.3 million copies in the UK. http://www.everyhit.com/bestsellingsingles.html
==The Break-Up of WHAM!==
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", and a greatest hits album titled The Final would be forthcoming, along with a farewell concert entitled The Final. Announcing the break-up, Michael said: "I think it should be the most amicable split in pop history."http://www.george.michael.szm.com/Esection/E1986sh.html
At London's 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, https://web.archive.org/web/20120912030459/http://www.tours.yogsbackyard.co.uk/home.php which included support artists, on a scorching hot day in London.
==George Michael's Death==
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." https://twitter.com/ajridgeley/status/813176997174280192 Michael was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist in November 2023, with Ridgeley as the induction presenter. https://pitchfork.com/news/miguel-adam-levine-and-carrie-underwood-perform-at-george-michaels-rock-hall-2023-induction/
==Discography==
===Studio Albums===
*Fantastic (1983)
*Make It Big (1984)
*Music from the Edge of Heaven (1986)
===Compilation albums===
*The Final (1986)
*The Best of Wham!: If You Were There... (1997)
*Japanese Singles Collection: Greatest Hits (2020)
*The Singles: Echoes from the Edge of Heaven (2023)
===Remix Albums===
*12" Mixes (1988)
*The Best Remixes (1989)
===Singles===
*Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do) (1982)
*Young Guns (Go for It) (1982)
*Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do: Reissue) (1983)
*Bad Boys (1983)
*Club Tropicana (1983)
*Club Fantastic Megamix (1983)
*Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go (1984)
*Careless Whisper (1984)
*Freedom (1984)
*Everything She Wants (1984)
*Last Christmas (1984)
*I'm Your Man (1985)
*The Edge of Heaven (1986)
*Where Did Your Heart Go? (1986)
==Filmography==
*Wham! in China: Foreign Skies (1986)
*Wham! (2023)
==Tours==
*Club Fantastic Tour (1983)
*The Big Tour (1984-1985)
*Whamamerica! (1985)
*The Final (1986)
==References==
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