Freedom (Wham! song)

"Freedom" is a 1984 song by English pop duo Wham! from their album Make It Big, released on 1 October 1984. It became the group's second number one hit on the UK Singles Chart and reached number three in America. It was written and produced by George Michael, one half of the duo.

History
Wham! had already enjoyed a successful 1984 by the time "Freedom" was released in October of the year. "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" had given them their first UK number one and had then reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. Michael had then gone to number one with a solo single, "Careless Whisper".

"Freedom" was number one in the UK for three weeks, and featured on the album Make It Big, which was issued at the same time. "Freedom" was the 10th biggest-selling single of 1984. This song also reached number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US in September 1985.

The melody of the song's chorus was used by Michael as an introduction to his song, "Faith", played on a church organ.

A reworked version of the song with altered lyrics (but still performed by the duo) was used to promote Maxell's line of audio cassettes in 1984.

When the single was released in the United States, the song was remixed and extended an extra 20 seconds. The remix involved the vocals being given more reverb and the organ sounds being higher up in the mix. The extension involved a new trumpet section and added vocals. The section had first been heard in The Big Tour to close the number.

The music video, coinciding with the 1985 US release, features the band touring around Beijing, China. Their visit to the nation was significant because they were the first Western pop band to play China.

The American remix was later included on The Final and later, the greatest hits compilation album The Best of Wham!: If You Were There.... However, the original version was included on the US release of Make It Big.

Critical reception
Cash Box said that "George Michael's R&B tinged vocals soar with the tune's catchy refrain." Billboard described the song as a "Motown tribute".

Track listings

 * Incorrectly labelled as 5:00 in length.


 * The "long version" is mislabeled as the "long mix".

Tommy Atkins version
British country singer Tommy Atkins released a cover version of "Freedom" in 2020. His version featured an "openly gay" lyric edit, swapping in "boy, all I really want is you." The recording reached the top 5 on download charts across the UK, Canada and New Zealand. The recording made history, becoming the first country hit in the UK and Europe to feature overtly gay lyrics. Atkins' version was playlisted by hundreds of major country radio and pop stations. The cultural significance of this was acknowledged in the BBC 6 Music documentary Loud and Proud.