Two music icons, 2 surprisingly similar paths

Elvis Presley and George Michael relied on similar formulas for success – and paid a similarly high price

Helmi Yusof

Published Thu, Jun 30, 2022 · 05:00 PM

Movies

TWO movies on iconic musicians opened recently: The first is Elvis, a glitzy over-the-top biopic on Elvis Presley directed by Baz Luhrmann (of Romeo + Juliet fame). The second is George Michael: Freedom Uncut, a poignant documentary on George Michael co-directed by the musician prior to his death and his best friend David Austin.

On the surface, Presley and Michael don’t seem to have much in common. The former was American, the latter was British. They had different socio-economic backgrounds and sexual orientations. They achieved global success 3 decades apart. Michael was 14 in 1977, the year Presley died.

But the 2 movies coincidentally opened in the same week of June, and showed how the 2 gifted musicians …