Deon estus biography
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Deon Estus
American bassist and singer (1956–2021)
Musical artist
Jeffery Deon Estus[1] (July 4, 1956 – October 11, 2021) was an American musician and singer, best known as the bass player of Wham! and as the bassist on George Michael's first two solo projects. Estus' single "Heaven Help Me", with additional vocals by Michael, reached number 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1989.[2]
Early life
[edit]Estus was born in Detroit on July 4, 1956.[3] He went to Northwestern High School. There, he sang second tenor in the choir under the direction of Brazel Dennard. His bass guitar teacher was James Jamerson of Motown's the Funk Brothers.[4]
Career
[edit]Estus joined the R&B band Brainstorm as a teenager, recording two albums with them and scoring a hit with "Popcorn". During the early 1980s, he moved to Europe to join and tour with Marvin Gaye. He lived in Belgium and Ireland, before settling in London. He turned down the cha
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Deon Estus, the longtime Wham! and George Michael bassist and who released the 1989 solo hit “Heaven Help Me,” has died at 65.
The news was broken on Estus’ social media accounts. “It is with real sadness I post that Deon Estus passed away This Morning,” read a post on Twitter. “Deon was mostly known as the third member of Wham! Deon was passionate about music and loved interacting with his loyal fans.”
His death was confirmed by his partner Brenda Kaye Pierce on Facebook. “My dearest, closest partner and significant other of 4 years transitioned and all I can remember is our last conversation the day before,” she wrote. “My heart will need time to heal. R.I.P. Deon. Love you forever.” The cause of death has not been publicly reported.
Born in Detroit in 1956, Estus joined pop duo Wham! in the 1980s, and become such an integral part of the group that he was sometimes called Wham!’s third member. He
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Deon Estus (born Jeffery Deon Estus) was an American bassist and singer, best known as the bass player of Wham! and as George Michael's bassist on all of the latter's subsequent projects. In 1988, Estus released a solo skiva entitled Spell and scored a U.S. #3 Billboard Hot 100 hit pop single, "Heaven Help Me". Estus also played with Marvin Gaye, Tina Turner, Frank Zappa, George Clinton, Annie Lennox, Edgar Winter, Aaron Neville, Elton John. He toured China with Wham!, performed at Rock in Rio, and with George Michael on his Faith tour. He recorded two albums with Brainstorm as a teenager, scoring a hit with "Popcorn." He most recently produced and co-wrote songs for aspiring singer Julie Anne, who boasts a 5 octave range. Estus was born in Detroit and graduated from Northwestern High School in 1974. He sang second tenor in the choir at Northwestern under the direction of Mr. Brazel Dennard. His bass teacher was the late James Jameson of Motown fame (th