How ‘horrible’ coincidence increased George Michael’s emotional connection to Freddie Mercury

16 June 2025, 14:29

The Wham! star felt deeply connected to the Queen frontman when he performed ‘Somebody to Love’ at 1992’s famous Freddie Mercury Tribute concert.

George Michael’s emotional connection to Freddie Mercury was increased by a “horrible coincidence” that occurred just a day after the Queen singer’s death.

Speaking on VH1’s Hangin’ With George Michael documentary, the Wham! star got choked up while trying to explain what made his performance at The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert for AIDS Awareness in 1992 so personally significant.

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George sang a rendition of ‘Somebody to Love’ at the show, which also saw performances from stars including David Bowie, Sir Elton John and Annie Lennox, and which attracted a crowd of over 72,000 spectators and saw more than a billion people tune in to watch at home.

Queen & George Michael - Somebody To Love (Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert)

The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert for AIDS Awareness was organised by the remaining members of Queen in April 1992 to remember their beloved frontman, who passed away from AIDS in November 1991.

Proceeds raised by the concert were used by Brian May, Roger Taylor and John Deacon to set up the Mercury Phoenix Trust in his honour.

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Recalling his 'Somebody to Love' performance at the concert, George told VH1: “It was a very strange experience for me,” before having to pause to hold back tears.

But despite finding it “hard” to talk about the topic, the then 43-year-old musician managed to continue.

George Michael gets emotional talking about the Freddie Mercury Tribute

“Freddie had died the day before I found out that my partner [Anselmo Feleppa] was HIV positive,” he explained.

“So, the coincidence of that was horrible,” George said: “And then on the actual day, the day itself was so bizarre for me because while I was incredibly proud to be singing Freddie’s song, [it was] incredibly sad to be singing it in that circumstance.”

In his 2017 Freedom documentary, recordings for which George completed just days before his death on Christmas Day 2016, the singer reflected on how while he was performing at the tribute concert, all that was on his mind was his then-secret lover’s health.

“It’s not an accident that the performance probably most well known in my career was sung to my lover who was dying,” he reflected.

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“I just wanted to die inside, I was so overwhelmed by the sadness,” George added, reflecting on how he was “singing the songs of this man I had worshipped as a child, who had passed away in the same manner my first living partner was going to experience.”

George’s partner Anselmo, a Brazilian fashion designer who he met in 1991, was present at The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert, so George sang his whole ‘Somebody to Love’ cover to him.

George would later go on to describe the emotional performance as “the loudest prayer of [his] life.”

Anselmo died from an AIDS-related illness in March 1993.

George grieved his loss for the rest of his life, revealing in Freedom: “He still – 23 years later – brings a tear to my eye. He was my saviour.”