Elton John, Kate Moss and Nile Rogers talk about their friend George Michael and the film he was making when he died. By Susannah Butter.
When George Michael told his best friend and collaborator David Austin that he wanted to make a film, Austin sensed what was coming. "George made this film the way he made everything," he says fondly. "He took complete control."
George Michael Freedom Uncut is the singer's final work. It is an intensely personal account of fame, love and grief. He was editing it a few days before he died suddenly, on Christmas Day 2016, aged 53, of heart and liver disease. The shadow of his absence hangs over the documentary, which has taken six years to finish without him.
Austin, a friend since childhood, calls it "Michael's story as he wanted it to be told" — which is to say, meticulously. The singer once admitted he was a control freak. "It's not because I want to be," he said. "I'm not at all into the power play that's involved in it. I'm a perfectionist. It's a big pain in the ass and it takes a lot of my time, but I have to do my own things."
In the film Michael lays out his credo, speaking articulately about the conflict he felt between wanting to make pop music that endured and the public scrutiny that came with that.
The boy from North London became a high-profile victim of celebrity culture: the lines between his professional and private life blurred. The world pored over his sexuality and his repeated acts of self-sabotage, such as crashing his car after taking drugs. When he was 22 he was advised not to walk down the street in America because of the risk he would be injured by fans trying to touch him.
Austin insists his friend was "capable" of dealing with attention but in the film Michael says the hysteria around him was overwhelming; he never wanted to be different but at the same time realised "maybe I am different after all ... all I wanted was success".
Elton John says that Michael's pain translated into his songs. "He was completely authentic as an artist — people felt for him, they felt his struggles." John is interviewed in the film, with many other stars, from Stevie Wonder to James Corden (Michael was his first guest on Carpool Karaoke), Tracey Emin and Kate Moss. Ricky Gervais recalls how game Michael was to send himself up in the television show Extras with sketches about cruising on Hampstead Heath and community service.
The last person to be interviewed for the documentary was Nile Rodgers, who recalls visiting Michael's house in Hampstead, North London. "The biggest, weird thing about being at George's house was the paparazzi stationed all down the street. I thought, 'How can a person live like this? It is so invasive.'"
Rodgers had just recorded a remix of Michael's 1987 song Fantasy and was nervous about the singer's reaction, wanting his blessing before it was released. "It was a drastic remake," he says. "I flew home to the States after recording and kept my phone next to me, checking it every five minutes to see if George had messaged to say what he thought about the mix. Then instead I got this message saying he was found dead. It was unbelievable."
Rodgers didn't want to release Fantasy without Michael's approval, so he left it untouched for four months, not even listening to it. "Then I got a call from David Austin. He told me, 'George chose you because he wanted you to change it, because of what you did with The Reflex by Duran Duran.' Still, it was heartbreaking to make the decision without him."
It came out in September 2017. Rodgers said it was appropriate that people had mixed feelings. "No one's heart was dragged through emotional ambiguity [about this song] more than mine." Rodgers, who first met Michael "in the hard-partying 80s" when he invited him to perform live on VH1 with Stevie Wonder and Steve Winwood, stresses his skill as a producer.
Freedom Uncut, which began life as a shorter film shown on Channel 4, starts with the release of Michael's 1987 solo debut, Faith, which is one of the bestselling albums of all time. Five years after that Michael's boyfriend, Anselmo Feleppa, "the person I had waited a lifetime for", died of an Aids-related illness. Michael talks about how his fear and sadness spurred him to take Sony to court over his restrictive contract. "It was a good place to put my anger." He lost US$8 million, but many of his arguments about the lack of agency that pop stars had continue, with discussions over the share of profits that Spotify gives to musicians.
For Moss, Michael was a generous next-door neighbour and fun friend. "My favourite night was after the Olympics closing ceremony," she says. "We went back to his house and we danced and laughed and rewatched his performance. It was a very long night, I was still there when the sun came up."
The first album Moss bought was by Wham! "I told George that I really wanted to go to the final Wham! concert and sat on the phone for eight hours, but they sold out. I was heartbroken. His music is still on all my playlists."
After Michael died, Austin stopped listening to his music. "But a few years ago I was in New York, walking down Madison Avenue and Praying for Time came on. It took me by surprise. It really hit me and I listened in a different way. I thought, 'He can really sing.'"
Austin and Michael's mothers were best friends. "We met when we were a few months old in our prams," he says. "We started writing songs together when we were around 5. One was called Music Maker of the World and we played Crocodile Rock by Elton John. George was the drummer and I played guitar and we recorded everything."
Michael's parents were always incredibly proud, Austin says. "He was such a kind, caring, gentle, giving person. I miss my friend. I miss our friendship, doing all the normal things together, speaking three or four times a day. Music was our first love."
Elton John remembers Michael as someone who was brave and very outspoken. "Dinner with him was always an event because he would have a definite opinion on anything. He took something I thought was near perfect in Don't Let the Sun and made it better. That's the biggest compliment I can pay."
Rupert Everett says: "His life was an inspiration, a wonderful drama. I miss him being alive."
One of the most poignant moments is when Michael talks about what he really wanted to do. "I want to leave songs ... that will mean something to later generations," he says. "I want to be remembered as someone who had some kind of integrity."
• George Michael Freedom Uncut is in cinemas from June 22, georgemichaelfreedomuncut.com. George Michael's limited edition box set Older is released on July 8. Order at georgemichael.lnk.to/Older
Written by: Susannah Butter
© The Times of London
