George Michael’s cause of death, confirmed

On Christmas Day of 2016, pop culture icon George Michael died in his home in Oxfordshire, England. Many in the music industry and fans all over the world mourned the loss of Michael, who gained popularity in the ‘80s as part of the duo Wham! before he embarked on a solo career.

According to reports, Michael’s partner, celebrity hairstylist Fadi Fawaz, went to the bedroom to wake him for lunch but found the singer unresponsive in bed. Back then, it was reported that Michael died of natural causes at 53 years old. Fawaz took to Twitter a couple of days after Michael’s death to express his grief over his partner’s passing and said that it was a Christmas he would never forget. “I will never stop missing you,” he wrote.

Reports about George Michael’s death

A post-mortem examination of Michael’s body was done after his death, but the results said that the cause of death was inconclusive. However, officials explained that despite not knowing the reason, they could confirm that it wasn’t anything suspicious and no foul play was involved. A statement was released saying that further testing must be done to verify Michael’s manner of death.

In March 2017, the coroner released Michael’s official cause of death as “dilated cardiomyopathy with myocarditis and fatty liver.” According to the Mayo Clinic dilated cardiomyopathy is a type of heart disease wherein the ventricles grow larger, making it harder for the heart to pump blood throughout the body. If left untreated, the condition can be fatal. Myocarditis, on the other hand, is the inflammation of the heart muscle. Michael also had a fatty liver, which can lead to liver failure if complications develop.

Kenny Goss, who was Michael’s partner for more than a decade before they parted ways in 2009, said that years of substance and alcohol abuse left the singer weak. Goss added, “I can’t say for sure but I think his body just gave up.”

Michael was posthumously inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2023. He was described as an artist who “fought for creative freedom and penned enduring hits that lived up to his ambitions.”