Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou was born on June 25, 1963, and died on December 25, 2016.

He was mostly known professionally as George Michael.

He was an English singer, songwriter, and record producer.

George rose to fame as a member of the music duo Wham!.

George Michael was best known for his work in the 1980s and 1990s, including hit singles such as “Last Christmas” and “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go”, and albums such as Faith (1987) and Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1 (1990).

He has sold more than 100 million records worldwide.

George Michael debut solo album, Faith, sold more than 20 million copies worldwide.

He achieved seven number one singles in the UK and eight number one hits on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US, including “Careless Whisper” and “Freedom! ’90”.

George Michael ranks among the best-selling British acts of all time, ranked by Billboard magazine as the 40th-most successful artist ever.

He won various music awards throughout his 30-year career, including three Brit Awards—he won Best British Male twice, four MTV Video Music Awards, four Ivor Novello Awards, three American Music Awards, and two Grammy Awards from eight nominations.

George Michael, who came out as gay in 1998, was an active LGBT rights campaigner and HIV/AIDS charity fundraiser.

He died at his home in Goring-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, due to suspected heart failure.

George Michael passed away at 53 years old.