“Wham! was always about the friendship,” says Shirlie Kemp
As Netflix release the new documentary Wham!, Shirlie Kemp joined Jackie Brambles on her Greatest Hits Radio evening show.
Shirlie opened up about her feelings on this latest retrospective and what son Roman thinks of her time as a popstar as well as reminiscing about her early days with the band.
She told Jackie it was emotional looking back on the documentary and said she felt exhausted watching it but at the same time felt happy seeing it.
“I’ve seen so many things that have been inaccurate, about Wham and about George,” she said. “But as soon as it started, I just had the biggest smile on my face because all of a sudden there were my best friends again, chatting and laughing, so I smiled the whole way through.”
Shirlie said she didn’t talk to her kids about her Wham! days because she was “just mum”, so took her son, Capital Breakfast’s Roman, to the screening of the documentary.
“He stood up after he’d watched it and went ‘Oh Mum you’ve had such a great life, I’m so proud of you’ and he patted me on the back, and I loved that. I felt really proud that I was actually a part of that band,” she revealed.
Explaining why Wham! wasn’t about the fame for her, Shirlie told Jackie: “Wham! was always about friendship for me it wasn’t about the success.
“Those two boys were my best friends, and it was kind of heart-breaking for me to have to share them with the world, once Wham! got famous.”
Continuing, Shirlie added: “It does change the dynamic of a friendship, but the lovely thing is all four of us have always been friends. I was best friends with George until he passed away and Andrew and Pepsi are like family to me, so you don’t hear that from many bands that they still all love each other.”
Ever wondered how #Wham became Wham? 💥
In this clip, @Shirliekemp shares the story of how she met #GeorgeMichael and @ajridgeley. 🫶
Listen to the full interview with Jackie Brambles, tonight from 7pm. pic.twitter.com/Qn1dWAOJ6J
— Greatest Hits Radio (@greatesthitsuk) July 5, 2023
Listen to Shirlie Kemp chat to Jackie Brambles on Greatest Hits Radio at greatesthitsradio.co.uk.