Documentary | The superb friendship behind Wham!

How did two childhood friends manage to create one of the most popular bands of the 1980s only to finally disband it when they were at the top, without this in any way affecting their ties?

Despite its immense and rapid success, the sweet pop of the British duo Wham! composed of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley was looked down upon as music for little girls, which I was when I received my first tape of the band. And like many North American girls, I discovered Wham!, which only lasted four years, shortly before it disappeared in favor of the solo career of George Michael, while Andrew Ridgeley s retired from showbiz, after a few unsuccessful attempts at personal projects.

What we learn in the documentary Whoa! by Chris Smith (director of the incredible documentary fyre and producer of the no less incredible series Tiger King) is that George Michael, one of the best composers of hits of his generation, would probably not have emerged without Wham!, but above all, without his moving friendship with Andrew Ridgeley.

They meet at 11 years old and will never leave each other. Andrew is the outgoing and the leader while George, who goes by the name of Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou, is a complexed boy of Greek origin who has not yet discovered his homosexuality, brought up by a strict father who has nothing to do with his artistic aspirations. These two, completely naive at the beginning, will create improbable successes which still persist today. who does not know careless Whisper, Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go Or Last Christmas ?

The story of Wham! is fully narrated by the two principals in an archival collage of their interviews, while the timeline is taken from the scrapbook very rich from Andrew’s mother who documented every success.

The duo clashes in a British musical environment marked by the punk movement, but with hindsight, they embodies the candy pink look of the 1980s and a recognizable sound among all. We have a little giggles to see them move on stage in white shorts, the straight hair of neat spraybut it gives a little bit of nostalgia too.

For five years, as the “whamania” grows, a transfer takes place. George Michael takes up more and more space as he asserts himself as a composer, performer and producer. His craving for fame is much greater than Andrew’s, as it is where he seeks approval and his identity, while hiding his sexual orientation. careless Whisper, one of the very first songs written by the duo before they were even known, would later be recorded in Memphis with legendary producer Jerry Wexler, but George, dissatisfied with the version, covered it in full according to his tastes (with that famous saxophone solo). Obsessed with the prize lists, he even admits to having been annoyed that Last Christmas came in second place in December 1984 behind Do They Know It’s Christmas?this collective Band Aid song, composed to help fight the famine in Ethiopia, when he participated with the biggest stars of the time.

It was at 19 that he confided to his friend that he was bisexual – which he made himself believe, he said, because in fact he was gay – and that would not change their relationship, on the contrary. Andrew will protect the one he affectionately calls Yog all his life. Even better, he will understand it when he wants to fly on his own solo, without holding it against him – anyway, he realizes that George’s aura is growing. At the famous Live Aid concert, it is George who sings Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me with Elton John, while Andrew is relegated to the choir. “It was his moment,” he sums up.

What will lead to the end of Wham!, by George Michael’s own admission, is his uneasiness, palpable in several interviews when he is told about his admirers, while straight Andrew plays around as a diversion. “I’m a huge star and I’m gay”, observes with despair the one who needs to be himself.

Members of Wham! will give a last concert to say their farewells on June 28, 1986, and for the first time since their childhood, their paths separate. But they will remain friends all their life; a week before George Michael’s sudden death in 2016, they were playing Scrabble together.

The musical world is full of stormy separations and stubborn resentments. It is far from being the case here, and besides George Michael described the end of Wham! as the sweetest breakup in music history, which is why this documentary feels so good, in addition to bringing back lovely memories.

I’ve long thought Andrew Ridgeley must be jealous of his best friend’s success. I understand today that he was rather his greatest admirer.

Documentary

Whoa!

Chris Smith

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