A recent report is saying that George Michael may have had a two-month stay at a luxury private retreat, The Sanctuary, in February in Australia to deal with a slate of issues including emotional anxiety and a drug disorder. He was rumored to be battling a dependency on Valium since undergoing a tracheotomy in 2011.
George cancelled his Australian tour in September 2012 and released a statement at that time, saying that he would receive overdue treatment for the trauma associated with his near-death experience in 2011.
George has been Twitter-silent since January 2013 with only a few comments in the last five months.
George Michael has written on his Twitter account, after a two-month absence. He addresses concerns about his health and wishes a belated happy Christmas to all his fans in his latest tweets.
Hey everyone! Belated HAPPY XMAS!!! sorry you haven’t heard from your favourite singing greek for so long!
Fadi tells me some of you have been worrying about me, but you needn’t worry, I’m doing great! Feeling so much better than I was….
Hope you’ve all had a lovely Xmas, mine is still going on, my house is full of my nearest and dearest, thank you for all your tweets…:)
Must get back to my party, bur looking forward to a great 2013, i promise it will be full of great new music, huge Xmas hug to you all! xxxx
We last heard from George when he cancelled his Australian tour back in September because of ”major anxiety” related to the pneumonia that nearly killed him last year.
George Michael has an interview with Wales Online. Here is a recap:
On the Symphonica Tour
“And my audiences are just so amazing now, they really are. I can sort of feel their love and gratitude when I’m on stage and I think that comes from them having so many of their life experiences attached to my music over the years.”
“One of the ways they’ve (his fans) shown their appreciation to me on this tour is by being so patient with the songs I’m performing. I’m sure there have been numbers that they’ve never heard of, or the occasional jazz standard or whatever, but they’ve just seemed totally prepared to go on this musical journey with me. I think that really shows the level of fans that I have.”
On the Pneumonia and Coma
“What I do remember, though, was feeling this terrible, terrible guilt and pity for what my family, friends and my new partner had to see me go through,” he admits.
“They literally spent two or three weeks not knowing if I was going to make it, and if that had happened to me in reverse – if it had been one of my sisters fighting for her life – well I know I’d have been absolutely devastated.
“For my part, though, I didn’t realise the danger I was in until after it was all over.”
On “White Light” and the New Album
“It’s really a celebration of my coming through pneumonia last year,” he says of his new single. “Pretty much everything I do is autobiographical, and in this case, having come close to death, I knew something good musically would come out of it. A lot of people were expecting me to write a ballad, but I wanted something uplifting and positive, hence the dance track.”
George says the new album is “going very well”.
“I’d say this album lies somewhere between Faith and Older in terms of content and it’s probably the most radio-friendly album I’ve made in a long, long time. It’s pretty upbeat and I’m sure that my fans will like it, although I’ll be waiting for them to let me know which tracks they think will be the potential classics. I haven’t settled on a title yet, so watch this space. I think it’ll be out early next year.”
On Success
“I don’t know how it happened, I really don’t. But I’m still here and my new single really kind of says I’m not ready to go anywhere. In my business, success is something that can sort of slip away from people after a while. And not just success but also the inspiration and the self-doubt that’s needed to keep you trying to do better.”
“For me there’s always this possibility that you’ve lost something that you’re not aware of. And that’s exciting, you know. Because the day that I’m not worried anymore is the day that I should stop. I think if you’re complacent about your talent then it can definitely drift. That’s much less likely to happen if you realise what a privilege it is to be talented and successful in this business.”
George Michael cancelled his Australian tour on Sunday because of “major anxiety” related to the pneumonia that nearly killed him last year. The Australian leg of the tour was supposed to start in Perth on November 10.
“Since last year’s illness I have tried in vain to work my way through the trauma that the doctors who saved my life warned me I would experience,” George wrote on his web site.
“I was wrong to think I could work my way through the major anxiety that has plagued me since I left Austria last December.
“As soon as I complete these shows here in the UK I will receive the treatment which is so long overdue.”
Michael said doctors had recommended complete rest and counselling but he had “believed wrongly that making music and getting out there to perform for the audiences… would be therapy enough in itself.”
Though he said his voice had recovered completely, adding that “I truly think that some of my recent performances have been my best ever,” Michael said there had been a heavy psychological toll.
“Unfortunately I seriously underestimated how difficult this year would be,” George said.
Chugg Entertainment announced that Sir Elton John and his band will be the first act to open the newly constructed Perth Arena with a second Perth Concert on Saturday 10 November.
The event will be performed “Under The Stars” with the Arena roof open. Elton John’s other Perth concert, already sold out, is on Monday 12 November.
This concert by Sir Elton John replaces the George Michael concert scheduled for 10 November. Customers who currently hold tickets to George Michael’s Perth Arena concert on November 10 have the option to use these tickets for the new opening event, Elton John, on the same night, or to obtain a refund on their tickets. Ticketek will contact ticket holders to advise of the process to be followed.
In a statement Sir Elton John said he is excited to be the opening act of Perth’s new home of entertainment.
“My dear friend George Michael has been giving some amazing performances on the Symphonica tour, and I’m very sorry that he can’t play the Perth concert.
“But I’m more than happy to step in for him and play the opening night at the brand new Perth Arena on November 10.”
“It is a fabulous building and I’m told we can even have the roof open for our concert and play under the stars!
“My band and I will make absolutely sure that Perth Arena has an unforgettable opening night, and we are looking forward to seeing the city come out in force to celebrate this stunning new building,” he said.
The full orchestra provides a spectacular backdrop to the show, and breathes a sparkling new level of seduction to old George classics.
Eighties favourites Father Figure and Different Corner are sensual singalongs while the likes of Cowboys and Angels and Kissing a Fool were made for this sort of symphonic treatment – it’s truly spine-tingling stuff.
It’s super-stylish too, a sleek black circular set, with our Gorgeous George at the heart of it all in sharp black suit and Tom Ford specs.
… Too many magic moments to mention, this tour proves 49-year-old George is back, and boy he means business.
However, the covers are as hit and miss as his driving. Rufus Wainwright’s gay persecution lament Going to a Town is ethereally beautiful as is David Bowie’s Wild Is the Wind, before its unfortunate funk detour, but the vocoder version of New Order’s True Faith (“about addiction”) damages Michael’s vocals far more than his tracheotomy might have.
At 49, he seems to be struggling to recover the once uncanny ability to deliver what his public wants. There aren’t too many screams of excitement when he opts for big band standards and a cocktail jazz version of the Police’s well-worn Roxanne over Faith or Careless Whisper.
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