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Boy George Facts & Worksheets

Boy George is an English singer-songwriter, famous for hit songs such as “Karma Chameleon” and “Do You Really Want To Hurt Me?”

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Boy George is an English singer-songwriter, famous for hit songs such as “Karma Chameleon” and “Do You Really Want To Hurt Me?”. He is also a fashion designer, DJ, producer, and photographer.

See the fact file below for more information on Boy George or alternatively, you can download our 30-page Boy George worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

Early Life

  • George Alan O’Dowd or more popularly known as Boy George was born in Kent, England, on June 14, 1961.
  • He was raised in Woolwich by parents, Jerry O’Dowd and Dinah O’Dowd.
  • He is the second among five siblings, Kevin, Gerald, David, and Siobhan. 
  • He also has a half-brother named Richard, who is older than him.
  • According to Boy George, his family history is close to being a sad Irish song.
  • His mother, Dina, experienced abuse living with Boy George’s father.
  • For Boy George, Jerry was not only a terrible husband but also a terrible father.
  • His youngest brother, Gerald, was diagnosed with schizophrenia and was convicted for killing his wife.
  • In the United Kingdom, the New Romantic movement is a popular 1970s pop culture movement where Boy George was a follower.
  • He was considered a fashion icon and was famous for his androgynous appearance.
  • There were some speculations about his gender, and in an interview, he disclosed that he was bisexual.
  • However, in his autobiography, he stated that he was gay and had secret relationships with Kirk Brandon and his former bandmate, Jon Moss. 
  • Boy George got sued for libel in 1995 when he mentioned in his autobiography the relationship he had with Kirk Brandon.
  • He won the case and was paid a sum of  £200,000.
  • Boy George also suffered from drug addiction for many years.
  • He was addicted to heroin and was also a user of other drugs.
  • He attempted to perform on stage while under its influence.
  • One of his brothers, David, had publicly discussed Boy George’s drug addiction with the intention to save him from his addiction.
  • However, Boy George denied the claims David made.
  • Despite his denial, he still got arrested through Operation Culture due to possession of heroin.
  • Boy George decided to end his drug addiction because three of his friends, Michael Rudetsky, Mark Vaultier, and Mark Golding, died of a drug overdose.
  • He was caught in Manhattan on October 7, 2005, for illegal possession of cocaine and an untrue report on burglary.
  • He was fined $1,000, a five-day community service, and made to attend drug rehabilitation.
  • In 2009, Boy George faced another controversy when he was arrested and sentenced to 15 months for imprisoning a Norwegian male escort.
  • After four months, he was released due to his good behavior.
  • However, it was still required for him to use an ankle monitor and follow a curfew to finish the remaining period of his sentence.

Career

  • Boy George’s music is a mix of rhythm and blues and reggae genre, the blue-eyed soul.
  • As a fashion icon, his influences are David Bowie and Marc Bolan.
  • His fashion caught the attention of Malcolm McLaren, who recruited him into performing with a group named Bow Wow Wow.
  • Boy George established his group after his journey with Bow Wow Wow.
  • Originally named Sex Gang Children, his band was later called the Culture Club due to the different ethnic backgrounds of its members Mikey Craig (bassist), Jon Moss (drummer), and Roy Hay (guitarist).
  • Boy George was the vocalist of the group.
  • Although EMI Records did not sign Culture Club under their company, the band still produced demos that they bought.
  • Virgin Records signed with them and focused on their European releases while Epic Records arranged their U.S and North American distributions.
  • Their debut album in 1982 was entitled Kissing To Be Clever.
  • Their songs such as Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?, Time, and I’ll Tumble 4 Ya were chart-toppers.
  • Right after, they released Colour By Numbers, their next hit album.
  • Karma Chameleon, a song included in this album, became very popular internationally.
  • Other songs that topped the US and UK charts include Church of the Poison Mind, Victims, It’s a Miracle, and Miss Me Blind.
  • Culture Club’s third album was not as successful as the former albums.
  • Boy George performed in the best-selling single, Do They Know It’s Christmas in the charity supergroup Band Aid on November 25, 1984.
  • The song’s proceeds were donated to the African famine victims in Ethiopia. 
  • In 1986, their fourth album entitled From Luxury to Heartache produced another hit single, Move Away. 
  • The band soon disbanded due to the drug addiction of Boy George, a secret love affair within the group, an emerging wrongful death lawsuit, and the subpar result of the performance for their last two albums.
  • They reunited in July 1998, where they performed and appeared in different shows.
  • In the same year, they got back on the charts with their songs I Just Wanna Be Loved and Your Kisses are Charity.
  • In 1999, they produced another album, Don’t Mind If I Do.
  • In May 2014, the group was back together and set to perform on 11 dates, but during a pre-tour interview, Boy George walked out when he got asked about his criminal conviction.
  • Following this, concert performances in Christchurch and Auckland were both canceled.

Solo Career

  • Boy George attended treatment for his drug addiction after Culture Club’s disbandment.
  • He released his first solo album, Sold, in 1987, which was a hit in Europe.
  • His first solo US chart-topping song, Live My Life, was a soundtrack from Hiding Out.
  • His later released solo albums were Tense Nervous Headache and Boyfriend, but Virgin Records only chose songs that included his North-American release album entitled High Hat.
  • He released a protest song entitled No Clause 28, which points to the prohibition of the promotion of homosexuality by local authorities.
  • Boy George created his label, More Protein, in 1989 and recorded songs through the band Jesus Loves You and Angela Dust as his pseudonym as a writer.
  • He continued producing various hit songs such as After the Love, Generations of Love, Bow Down Mister, and The Crying Game. 
  • Boy George was also known as a disc jockey, where he first performed at Planets in London’s Piccadilly.
  • He became a notable DJ who made mixes for Fantazia The House Collection 2 and compiled their songs for London nightclub’s Ministry of Sound.
  • He had released another album entitled Cheapness and Beauty and The Unrecoupable One Man Bandit-Volume One.
  • He joined a 1997 project with musicians John Themis and Ritchie Stevens.
  • Boy George continued being active as a soloist with appearances as tv and radio guests, joining collaborations, and even starring in the London musical stage, Taboo.
  • In 2002, he released an unplugged collection of his acoustic songs through U Can Never B2 Straight album.
  • He also released a series of electronica songs and limited edition records including the 13-track album Yum Yum,  under the pseudonym The Twin.
  • In 2010, he launched Ordinary Alien – The Kinky Roland Files album, a year after he signed to his new agency.
  • He continued producing music and, in 2013, released Coming Home, a song co-written with his former Culture Club Member, Mikey Craig.
  • In the same year, he announced that he would release a new album after 18 years.
  • Some songs from the album This Is What I Do was written by himself, and some with his colleagues, John Themis, Kevan Frost, and Ritchie Stevens.
  • It also featured other writing collaborations and was finally released by Kobalt Label Services.
  • He released two songs, Clouds and Isolation, through his youtube channel in March 2020.
  • Boy George became a guest on various television shows, and he also appeared as a judge on talent shows such as The Big Deal.
  • He became a mentor in the popular singing show, The Voice UK and The Voice Australia.
  • Apart from being a musician, Boy George was also a writer of books, and a documentary that featured him under The Biography Channel was published.
  • Boy George wrote the foreword of Practical Feng Shui by Simon G. Brown and co-wrote his autobiography Straight and Take it Like a Man.

Awards

  • Boy George was nominated for various awards, but his most notable wins include Ivor Novello Awards (2016) and the Attitude Awards (2018).

Boy George Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle that includes everything you need to know about Boy George across 30 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about Boy George who is an English singer-songwriter.

  • Boy George Worksheets
  • Boy George Worksheets
  • Boy George Worksheets
  • Boy George Worksheets
  • Boy George Worksheets
  • Boy George Worksheets

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Boy George Facts
  • What’s Missing?
  • Fact or Lie
  • Pick One
  • Boy George
  • Career
  • The Artist
  • Album Collection
  • Sing It, Fill It
  • Playlist
  • What’s Behind?

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Link will appear as Boy George Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, January 27, 2022

Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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