Freedom! '90

For the unrelated earlier song by Wham!, see Freedom (Wham! song).

"Freedom! '90"
Single by George Michael
from the album Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1
B-side
  • "Fantasy"
  • "Freedom" (Back to Reality mix)
Released
  • 30 October 1990 (1990-10-30) (US)
  • 7 December 1990 (1990-12-07) (UK)[1]
RecordedJune 1989[2]
Genre
Length
  • 6:30 (album/video/single edit)
  • 4:31 (UK radio edit)
  • 5:21 (radio edit)
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)George Michael
Producer(s)George Michael
George Michael singles chronology
"Waiting for That Day"
(1990) 		"Freedom! '90"
(1990) 		"Heal the Pain"
(1991)
Music video
"Freedom! '90" on YouTube

"Freedom! '90" (also known simply as "Freedom!") is a song written, produced, and performed by English singer-songwriter George Michael, and released by Columbia Records in October 1990. The "'90" added to the end of the title is to prevent confusion with a hit by Michael's former band Wham!, also entitled "Freedom". The song's backing beat is a sample from James Brown's song "Funky Drummer".[5]

It was the third single taken from Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1 (1990), though released as the second single from the album in the US and Australia. "Freedom! '90" was one of a few uptempo songs on this album. It was a major hit and peaked at No. 8 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The song refers to Michael's past success with Wham!, yet also shows a new side of himself as a new man, who is more cynical about the music business than he had been before.

Michael refused to appear in the music video for the song, directed by David Fincher, and cast a group of supermodels to appear instead. It went into heavy rotation on MTV and was remastered for the 2017 documentary, George Michael: Freedom.[6] On 30 October 2020 it premiered on YouTube in 4K for its 30th anniversary.[7] Michael performed this song, alongside his 2012 single "White Light", during the closing ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics. Rolling Stone placed "Freedom! '90" at number 126 in their list of "500 Best Songs of All Time" in 2021.[8] Billboard ranked it number 39 in their "500 Best Pop Songs of All Time" in 2023.[9]

  1. ^ "New Releases: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 1 December 1990. p. vii. Retrieved 16 August 2024.
  2. ^ Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1 (liner notes). George Michael. Epic Records. 3 September 1990. p. 4. 467295 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) CS1 maint: year (link)
  3. ^ a b Breihan, Tom (13 October 2021). "The Number Ones: George Michael's "Praying For Time"". Stereogum. Retrieved 9 December 2023. 'Freedom! '90' is a glorious pop anthem, equal parts house and gospel and Madchester shuffle...
  4. ^ Breihan, Tom (27 October 2021). "The Number Ones: Stevie B's "Because I Love You (The Postman Song)"". Stereogum. Retrieved 15 December 2023. George Michael's euphoric 'Freedom! '90', a gospel-infused and breakbeat-driven dissection of the man's own career...
  5. ^ Cowie, Del (21 February 2017). "Why Clyde Stubblefield's 'Funky Drummer' is the most important drum solo ever". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 22 February 2017. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  6. ^ "George Michael: Freedom - The Film". georgemichael. 17 October 2017. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 2 November 2020 – via YouTube.
  7. ^ "George Michael - Freedom! '90 (Official 4K Video)". georgemichael. 30 October 2020. Retrieved 2 November 2020 – via YouTube.
  8. ^ "500 Best Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. 15 September 2021. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
  9. ^ "The 500 Best Pop Songs: Staff List". Billboard. 19 October 2023. Retrieved 20 October 2023.