Boy George Biography
George Alan O'Dowd has had a career in music, fashion designing and photography spanning over thirty years he goes by the stage name Boy George and was born on June 14 1961 in Bexley, Kent, England, UK. George was raised by his parents Gerald and Dinah O'Dowd along with five siblings in a middle-class home that comprised of aggressive and loud members that needed no help in establishing their presence over others.
George was the complete opposite and he preferred to stay alone listening to old records and composing his own lyrics, at school George was a poor performer and his grades suffered from intentional neglect as he spent time from class in the music club. Soon enough an innocent love for singing turned into a teenage rebellion that included skipping school to hang out in local pubs and getting into confrontations with the school administration. This escalated to the joining of misleading groups that saw George’s image taking a turn around to feature heavy make-up and attires that were questioned by many, in the end George was asked to leave the school over fears that his behaviour would be replicated by the other students.
Unshaken George got a job working at one of the pubs he frequented this did not last as the teenager had no working experience to show, after a series of hardships he landed an opportunity at a career in music in 1981. This had come after a producer had been informed of a group of teenagers that performed in restaurants and pubs in the Kent region he recruited George in a performing band that was named Bow Wow Wow. Although in a minor and background role George would soon become famous and known all over the UK, this initial success was short lived and the new musician was inducted in another band that was called In Praise of Lemmings. A couple of name changes later and the band In Praise of Lemmings became the Culture Club in 1981 this was to be the beginning of a legacy in music that would last for decades.
Signed to Virgin Records, George enjoyed great success with a 1982 debut album titled Kissing to Be Clever, the production’s singles like ‘Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?’ and ‘Clock of the Heart‘ went straight to the top of UK music charts. With the Culture Club George released more albums that included Colour By Numbers, Waking Up with the House on Fire, From Luxury To Heartache, and Sold.
Despite enjoying considerable success George was rumoured to be using heavy drugs and many times he was seen in possession of cocaine, this did however not affect his career with the band or a solo career on the side and in 1989 George formed a recording label named More Protein. Under More Protein George continued a successful reign into the 90’s with hit single like ‘Generations Of Love’, ‘After The Love’, ‘Bow Down Mister’, and ‘One On One’.
In 2002 George released the first album of the decade titled U Can Never B2 Straight, he ventured into the disk jockey business and established a fashion line titled B-Rude. George continues to record for artists like Kylie Minogue and his performances are in concerts and live radio shows.
George’s music blends a variety of genres including dance, pop, rock, new wave and soul.
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