British pop singer, the outrageous lead singer with “Frankie Goes to Hollywood,” the group that had international success with the hit songs “Relax” and “Two Tribes” during the mid 1980s. Born to a working class Liverpool family and raised around the corner from John Lennon’s Penny Lane, Holly Johnson began playing guitar at 13. A teenage fan of David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust, he and a friend went to see Bowie at the Liverpool Empire on 6/10/1973 where they were beaten up for being costumed in platform shoes and make-up.
Johnson later assumed a more punk rocker look with his colourful hair, clothes and exotic cosmetics. He chose his nickname spontaneously when asked on a dance-floor for his name, taking “Holly” (after Holly Woodlawn) from Lou Reed’s “Walk On The Wild Side” that was playing at the time. Truman Capote’s Holly Golightly was also in the back of his mind.
After performing as the vocalist with the group “Big In Japan,” Johnson formed “Frankie Goes to Hollywood” in Liverpool in the summer of 1980 with Paul Rutherford, Nasher Nash, Mark O’Toole, and Peter Gill. Johnson came up with the name of the group at the last minute before the band were scheduled to play their first gig, after seeing a Variety magazine headline “Frankie Goes Hollywood” which reported Frank Sinatra’s move from Las Vegas. The fact that it contained “Holly” sparked Johnson’s attention. The group’s name subsequently featured on many t-shirts in the form of slogans. Holly Johnson and Paul Rutherford’s unashamed and outrageous gayness added to the group’s curiosity value, provoking the meeker (and then closeted) Boy George to write a letter to the Record Mirror complaining about their upfront approach. Johnson was the first male pop star to wear designer clothes (by Vivienne Westwood among others). FGTH’s biggest hit was “Relax” which reached No.1 in the British pop charts in 1984, causing such a stir with its (homo)erotic content about oral sex that it was banned by BBC Radio 1 for reasons of “good taste.” This ensured that their first three singles all got to No.1, with “Two Tribes” staying there for nine weeks.
In the early 1980s Johnson met Wolfgang Kuhle, a successful art dealer, who became his personal manager and lover. They have remained together ever since with their ‘only child’ — Funky, a white poodle. In 1987 Holly Johnson fell out with the rest of his group. He also had an argument with his record company, winning a case in court against them on restraint of trade. Going solo in 1989, he had a No.1 album, but fell out with his new record company. He did not release another album until 1999.
In an interview for The Times in April 1993 he revealed that he was diagnosed with HIV in 1991. Not expecting to be alive much longer he wrote a candid and confessional autobiography, “A Bone in My Flute,” and held an exhibition of his paintings in the West End of London. With his 1999 single Disco Heaven he made his debut as a video director in a work that features celebrities such as Boy George and Jasper Conran imitating gay icons like Divine and Leigh Bowery. In 2000, Johnson continues to exhibit his paintings, write songs, and perform at major gay events.
Link to Wikipedia biography