George Michael at the 1989 MTV Video Music Awards, where he received the Video Vanguard Award for the music videos from his debut solo album, *Faith.*

The Soul Singer from North London

With songs like “Father Figure” and “Careless Whisper,” George Michael became the first white solo artist to lead the Billboard Top R&B Albums chart—re-drawing the boundaries of the genre forever

By Sathnam Sanghera

This year marks the 10th anniversary of George Michael’s death. It’s an excuse to re-evaluate his cultural legacy, which I have done at length in my new book, Tonight the Music Seems So Loud: The Meaning of George Michael. And when it comes to American R&B, one of the curious changes the Brit and former Wham! front man arguably helped bring about was the way the traditionally Black genre was classified and appreciated.

It all started in the late 80s, when the phrase “cultural appropriation” was still sociological jargon, and when Faith—featuring hits like “Father Figure” and the titular track “Faith”—made George Michael the first white soloist to lead the Billboard Top Black Albums chart. This success was followed by official accolades: at the 1989 American Music Awards, the public voted to anoint Faith the best Soul/R&B Album (beating Gladys Knight’s All Our Love and Keith Sweat’s Make It Last Forever), and Michael both Favorite Soul/R&B Male Artist (over Michael Jackson and rapper Bobby Brown) and Favorite Pop/Rock Male Artist (over Jackson, again, and Steve Winwood).