BRIT Awards 2017: George Michael's Wham! bandmates break down during emotional tribute
GEORGE MICHAEL'S Wham! bandmates struggled to hold back the tears during their emotional tribute to the late singer at the BRIT Awards 2017 tonight.
George Michael's Wham! bandmates gave an emotional tribute to the late singer
Wham bandmate Andrew Ridgley delivers touching tribute
George's Wham! co-star Andrew Ridgely along with Pepsi and Shirlie took to the stage at The O2 Arena to honour the star with a heartbreaking tribute at the BRIT Awards.
"On Christmas Day 2016 the greatest singer-songwriter of his generation, an icon of his era, and my good friend George Michael was lost," Andrew opened.
He recalled how Wham! had first got started and how they first became friends back in 1975.
Andrew described George as a "supernova" and said that when he died it "felt like the sky had fallen in".
Wham!'s Andrew Ridgely opened the tribute recalling the early years of their friendship
Shirlie broke down in tears as she delivered an emotional speech about George
Pepsi continued, getting choked up as she remembered the star.
"Music has magical power and George knew that. He understood love, loss, happiness and grief. He lives on in his music and in our hearts and I will never forget my wonderful friend," she said in tears.
Shirlie struggled to contain her emotions as she joined in on the heart-breaking tribute: "George was like a brother to me and I will always be proud of his achievements. His wonderful way with words spoke to everyone and his beautiful voice will live on forever as a gift to us all."
Following on from the Wham! bandmates' speech, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin took to the stage for a poignant 'duet' with George, singing his hit A Different Corner.
George's Wham! bandmates struggled to hold back the tears
Chris Martin performs heartfelt tribute to George Michael
Some fans praised Chris Martin's posthumous duet with George
Some fans slammed the tribute saying that Chris "killed" the hit
A video of George singing was combined with Chris' vocals and archive footage of the late star was shown on the big screens.
The posthumous duet divided viewers and fans as they flooded to social media to share their opinions.
Many praised the "beautiful" tribute, with one saying: "Well done and fantastic editing with the duet."
However one Twitter user commented: "My god… Chris Martin just killed that George Michael song… Absolutely pathetic performance. RIP George, sox about Chris!"