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HITS Daily Double

REMEMBERING A "FATHER FIGURE"

Following the untimely passing of pop music icon George Michael on Christmas Day, fans and members of the music community immediately flocked to social media, as well as music retailers, to lament and remember. See a selection of tweets and posts below.

As of Monday morning, nine George Michael songs and three more from Wham! were in the iTunes Top 200 singles—with Wham!'s beloved "Last Christmas" at #55, Michael's "Careless Whisper" Top 25, "Freedom 90" Top 40 and his Faith Top 5 on the album side. Two other albums, Twenty Five and Ladies & Gentlemen, have moved into the Top 20. Meanwhile, Spotify reports a 3,158% spike in streams of Michael's best-known work.

Expect key songs and albums to continue their ascent as mourning and celebration of Michael continue on the socials; a few high-profile examples appear below.