Music Metrics Vault

Wham!

Data updated on 2024-12-05 08:39:11 UTC
Wham! followed the parallel path of most of their British pop peers, celebrating colorful, candied hooks and big, effervescent beats at a time most emerging U.K. groups were dedicated to stylish, detached synth pop. George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley, the childhood friends who comprised Wham!, didn't ignore fashion -- their flashy visuals were tailor-made for MTV -- but they shunned the arty and dour portions of new wave, building their persona on American dance music and pop, even dabbling in a bit of rap on their first single "Wham! Rap (Enjoy What You Do)." That single, along with "Young Guns (Go for It)" and "Bad Boys," broke them into the U.K. Top Ten in 1983, but it was the jubilant "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" that turned them into international superstars. Almost immediately, Michael stood apart from Ridgeley: he had the supple, soulful voice showcased on their second number one, "Careless Whisper," which was occasionally credited to Michael on his own. Wham! sustained their run at the top of the charts through 1985 but in 1986, "A Different Corner" announced Michael's separation from his longtime friend. By the end of that year, Wham! had split, leaving Michael on the road to superstardom.

George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley met as preteens attending Bushey Meads School in Hertfordshire, England. Becoming fast friends, the two played in a ska revival band named the Executive before leaving to form their own group. Inspired by American dance and R&B, the duo decided to call themselves Wham! because they believed it represented their sunny, kinetic chemistry. Signing with Innervision Records, Wham! released their debut single "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)" in June 1982 but it failed to gain much attention. That wasn't the case with "Young Guns (Go for It)," another iteration of the group's youthful positivity. Reaching number three on the charts, "Young Guns (Go for It)" ignited Wham!'s stardom in the U.K., leading to a re-release of "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)" that climbed into the Top Ten in early 1983. "Bad Boys" and "Club Tropicana" followed their predecessors into the Top Ten in 1983, establishing the duo as peers of the likes of Culture Club, who were the only other British band of that moment drawing so heavily on American R&B.

After an acrimonious split with Innervision, Wham! signed with Epic Records--in America, they signed Columbia, another CBS-run imprint--paving the way for a massive worldwide push for their second album, Make It Big. Accompanied by a bright, cheerful video where the duo, along with backing vocalists Pepsi and Shirlie, sported shirts proclaiming "Choose Life," lead single "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" became a number one hit around the globe in the summer of 1984, sparking a blockbuster year for Wham! that was filled with chart-topping singles, including the effervescent "Freedom," slinky "Everything She Wants" and deceptively joyous "Last Christmas," which turned into an enduring instrumental standard. Among those number one hits was the ballad "Careless Whisper," a sultry slow jam that was promoted in some markets as a solo single by George Michael and in other countries as "Wham! Featuring George Michael," a puzzling choice considering it was one of the few Wham! singles co-written by Andrew Ridgeley. The credit confusion was the first indication that CBS viewed Michael as the true star of Wham!

Despite this simmering internal tension, Wham! stayed active throughout 1985, beginning the year by being the first Western group to tour China. Footage from the tour would feature in the American video for "Freedom," which was released in the US in 1985, several months after it topped the British charts, and also provided the basis for the 1986 documentary Wham! In China: Foreign Skies. The buoyant single "I'm Your Man" also reached number one in the UK late in the year but by that point, Michael was already planning to leave Wham! In March of 1986, he released the slow, contemplative "A Different Corner" as a solo single. A few months later, he and Ridgeley made it official: they announced their next single, the spritely "The Edge of Heaven" would be their last and they'd say farewell with an album aptly titled The Final, which contained older hits along with newer singles, including "A Different Corner." The release of The Final got a bit messy, with Wham!'s American record company whittling the album down to its newer material and entitling this collection Music from the Edge of Heaven.

Not long after separating, George Michael released Faith, the 1987 album that cemented his superstardom. Andrew Ridgeley didn't have nearly as successful a recording career: after his 1990 debut Son of Albert failed to find an audience, he bowed out of music. The pair remained friends until Michael's untimely death on December 25, 2016. Ridgeley subsequently published a 2019 memoir called Wham! George & Me and also participated in the 2023 documentary Wham! ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Total plays

3.3 billion
Updated on 2024-12-05

Monthly listeners

41,523,659

Followers

2,861,213

Top Cities

  1. United Kingdom
    571,759 listeners
  2. Australia
    407,094 listeners
  3. Australia
    337,994 listeners
  4. Ireland
    Dublin
    368,595 listeners
  5. Germany
    330,320 listeners

Most popular tracks

Track Plays Duration Release date
Last Christmas
Last Christmas
1,641,041,692 4:23 1984-11-29
Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go
Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go
1,049,976,409 3:51 1984-10-23
Everything She Wants
Everything She Wants
142,034,389 5:03 1984-10-23
Club Tropicana
Club Tropicana
130,582,868 4:26 1983-07-09
I'm Your Man
I'm Your Man
73,445,235 4:07 1986-11-25
Freedom
Freedom
57,252,479 5:02 1984-10-23
The Edge of Heaven
The Edge of Heaven
38,741,618 4:31 1986-07-01
Everything She Wants - Remix
Everything She Wants - Remix
20,466,584 6:31 1984-01-01
Last Christmas - Pudding Mix
Last Christmas - Pudding Mix
18,423,717 6:38 1984-11-29
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?)
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?)
16,054,282 6:44 1983-07-09
Young Guns (Go for It!)
Young Guns (Go for It!)
14,662,529 3:56 1983-07-09
Bad Boys
Bad Boys
11,818,025 3:21 1983-07-09
Where Did Your Heart Go?
Where Did Your Heart Go?
9,822,085 5:43 1986-07-01
Last Christmas - Single Version
Last Christmas - Single Version
9,445,412 4:47 2000-09-15
Heartbeat
Heartbeat
6,817,004 4:44 1984-10-23
If You Were There
If You Were There
5,487,656 3:39 1984-10-23
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?)
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?)
4,833,363 3:34 1982-09-29
Everything She Wants
Everything She Wants
4,830,364 5:28 1984-11-29
Credit Card Baby
Credit Card Baby
4,766,345 5:10 1984-10-23
A Ray of Sunshine
A Ray of Sunshine
4,677,167 4:47 1983-07-09
Nothing Looks the Same In the Light
Nothing Looks the Same In the Light
4,086,857 5:56 1983-07-09
Like A Baby
Like A Baby
3,993,446 4:15 1984-10-23
I'm Your Man
I'm Your Man
3,517,765 6:05 1986-07-01
Battlestations
Battlestations
3,467,249 5:25 1986-07-01
Young Guns (Go For It!)
Young Guns (Go For It!)
3,321,219 5:11 1985-01-03
Club Tropicana - Balearic Breeze Remix
Club Tropicana - Balearic Breeze Remix
3,202,334 2:57 2023-07-05
Love Machine
Love Machine
2,943,585 3:23 1983-07-09
Wham Rap '86
Wham Rap '86
2,504,025 6:33 1986-07-01
Come On!
Come On!
1,949,412 4:24 1983-07-09
Blue - Live in China
Blue - Live in China
1,419,524 5:43 1986-07-01
Freedom - Long Mix
Freedom - Long Mix
1,171,944 7:09 1985-01-03
Club Tropicana - Wonderland Redux - Remix
Club Tropicana - Wonderland Redux - Remix
1,161,006 3:58 2022-08-05
If You Were There - Remastered 2006
If You Were There - Remastered 2006
1,046,605 3:44 2006-11-11
A Ray of Sunshine - Instrumental Remix
A Ray of Sunshine - Instrumental Remix
851,851 5:40 1983-07-09
Young Guns (Go for It!)
Young Guns (Go for It!)
824,999 3:43 2011-05-20
Nothing Looks the Same In the Light - Instrumental Remix
Nothing Looks the Same In the Light - Instrumental Remix
728,634 6:43 1983-07-09
I'm Your Man - Extended Stimulation
I'm Your Man - Extended Stimulation
625,729 6:58 1985-01-03
Love Machine - Instrumental Remix
Love Machine - Instrumental Remix
555,814 3:28 1983-07-09
Go for It!
Go for It!
460,631 4:50 2023-07-07
everything he wants...feat. Curtis Santiago
everything he wants...feat. Curtis Santiago
371,884 3:54 2003-01-01
Blue (Armed with Love)
Blue (Armed with Love)
365,912 3:56 2020-11-11
Club Fantastic Megamix
Club Fantastic Megamix
320,053 3:57 2023-07-07
Do It Right - Instrumental
Do It Right - Instrumental
194,482 4:05 2023-07-07
Young Guns (Go for It!) - 12" Mix
Young Guns (Go for It!) - 12" Mix
57,221 6:56 1996-04-02
Wham! Rap '86
Wham! Rap '86
55,331 6:35 2023-07-07
Club Tropicana - Instrumental
Club Tropicana - Instrumental
47,778 3:32 2023-07-07
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) - Club Mix
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) - Club Mix
26,192 4:20 2023-07-07
Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go - Instrumental
Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go - Instrumental
22,944 4:02 2023-07-07
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) - Social Mix
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) - Social Mix
21,343 6:45 2023-07-07
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) - Unsocial Mix
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) - Unsocial Mix
19,515 6:38 2023-07-07
I'm Your Man - Acappella
I'm Your Man - Acappella
17,691 4:18 2023-07-07
Bad Boys - Instrumental
Bad Boys - Instrumental
16,113 3:24 2023-07-07
Freedom - Instrumental
Freedom - Instrumental
15,330 5:10 2023-07-07
Club Tropicana
Club Tropicana
15,238 3:44 2018-07-25
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) - Special Club Remix
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) - Special Club Remix
14,602 3:05 2023-07-07
Everything She Wants - Remix
Everything She Wants - Remix
3,911 5:33 2020-11-11
A Ray of Sunshine
A Ray of Sunshine
3,692 4:54 2020-11-11
Where Did Your Heart Go?
Where Did Your Heart Go?
2,971 5:08 2020-11-11
Bad Boys - 12" Version
Bad Boys - 12" Version
2,950 4:58 2020-11-11
Last Christmas - Instrumental
Last Christmas - Instrumental
2,776 4:26 2020-11-11

New releases

The Singles: Echoes from the Edge of Heaven (Expanded)
The Singles: Echoes from the Edge of Heaven (Expanded)
2023-07-07
[Sony Music CG]
The Singles: Echoes from the Edge of Heaven
The Singles: Echoes from the Edge of Heaven
2023-07-07
[Sony Music CG]
Club Tropicana (Balearic Breeze Remix)
Club Tropicana (Balearic Breeze Remix)
2023-07-05
[Ministry of Sound Recordings]
Club Tropicana (Wonderland Redux - Remix)
Club Tropicana (Wonderland Redux - Remix)
2022-08-05
[Cheeky Records]
Japanese Singles Collection: Greatest Hits
Japanese Singles Collection: Greatest Hits
2020-11-11
[Sony Music UK]
George Michael & Wham! Last Christmas: The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
George Michael & Wham! Last Christmas: The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
2019-11-08
[Sony Music CG]
Uma Segunda Chance para Amar (Trilha Sonora Original)
Uma Segunda Chance para Amar (Trilha Sonora Original)
2019-11-08
[Sony Music CG]
The Final
The Final
1986-11-25
[Sony Music UK]
Music From The Edge Of Heaven
Music From The Edge Of Heaven
1986-07-01
[Columbia]
Wham 12" Mixes
Wham 12" Mixes
1985-01-03
[Epic]
LAST CHRISTMAS
LAST CHRISTMAS
1984-11-29
[Epic]
Make It Big
Make It Big
1984-10-23
[Columbia]
Everything She Wants (Remix)
Everything She Wants (Remix)
1984-01-01
[Sony Music CG]
Fantastic
Fantastic
1983-07-09
[Epic]
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?)
Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?)
1982-09-29
[Sony Music UK]