Wham! were an English pop group, formed in 1981 by George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley. Despite how brief their career was, the duo had a lot of impact and George Michael went on to become a successful solo artist.

Their first moment in the limelight came in 1982 when they were picked to go on Top of the Pops, and performed the single “Young Guns (Go for It!)”. It was an overnight sensation and peaked at #3 in the UK charts, paving the way for further singles “Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)”, “Bad Boys” and “Club Tropicana”. By the time they released their debut album Fantastic in 1983, Wham! had become one of Britain’s biggest pop acts. International recognition came with Make It Big in 1984, along with a string of hit singles — “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go” entered the charts around the world at #1, as well as “Careless Whisper” (issued as George Michael solo piece), “Freedom” and “Last Christmas”, which made it to #2 after “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”, where George Michael also participated.

By 1986, George Michael wanted to distance himself from Wham! and launch a solo career, so a final greatest hits album The Final (marketed as Music from the Edge of Heaven in the US and Japan) was released. Farewell single “The Edge of Heaven” went to #1 in the UK and made it to the top 10 in America.