From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia George Michael (born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou; 25 June 1963 – 25 December 2016) was an English singer, songwriter, record producer and philanthropist who rose to fame as a member of the music duo Wham! and later embarked on a solo career. Michael has sold over 80 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time. He achieved seven number one songs on the UK Singles Chart and eight number one songs on the US Billboard Hot 100. He was widely known for his success in the 1980s and 1990s, including Wham! singles such as "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" and "Last Christmas" and solo singles such as "Careless Whisper" and "Faith". Michael won various music awards, including two Grammy Awards, three Brit Awards, three American Music Awards, four MTV Video Music Awards, and six Ivor Novello Awards. In 2004 the Radio Academy named Michael the most played artist on British radio during the period 1984–2004. In 2008 he was ranked 40th on Billboard's list of the Greatest Hot 100 Artists of All Time. Michael, who came out as gay in 1998, was an active LGBT rights campaigner and HIV/AIDS charity fundraiser. In the early hours of 25 December 2016, he was found dead at his home in Goring-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, England, aged 53. A coroner's report attributed his death to natural causes.