Boy George Loves His Deeply Flawed Heroes

Boy George was chatting with Leonardo DiCaprio, an acquaintance from years ago, at a Cannes party in May when he realized the actor wasn’t particularly interested in their reunion.

“What I said was kind of like what your mum would say: ‘Oh, you’ve done well,’” he recalled in an interview. “He was probably thinking ‘You’re a lunatic,’” he added. “You know, he’s Leonardo DiCaprio, but so what? I’m Boy George!”

The musician, 62, was speaking from London’s East End, where he was preparing to go on tour with Culture Club, the new wave band he led to tremendous success in the 1980s. Though the group has been reunited for nearly a decade, not all has been rosy: The original drummer (and George’s ex) Jon Moss left in 2018 and subsequently sued over lost income. (A settlement was reached earlier this year.)

The pandemic, George said, pushed him to change old habits, and recapture this buoyant attitude: “As a kid, I was very gregarious and friendly — but fame kind of knocks out of you a bit.” He quoted an adage from David Bowie, about how aging allows you to become the person you should’ve been all along. “You can stay a fool all your life. But if you decide to not be like that, it’s such a relief,” he said. “And you go, Oh my God, Bowie was right about everything.”

In addition to the wise Ziggy Stardust, George spoke about 10 cultural inspirations. These are edited excerpts from the conversation.

1

‘The Power of Now’ by Eckhart Tolle

With every thought — anger, sadness — there’s also a whole range of feelings in between those things. You start to realize how little we use our imaginations, even when we think we’re radical and out there. Joy is in the mundane — it doesn’t come from Cannes, although Cannes is fabulous.

2

‘The Naked Civil Servant’

Quentin Crisp was a mad eccentric who moved to New York in his 70s and did these amazing one-man shows. He said some amazing things; he also said some really bad things. I suppose I love a lot of people that are deeply flawed, because I’m one of them. Do you want your heroes to be dull?

3

Hanging Out With Trees

The pandemic made me realize how mad nature is, and how beautiful it is. I’d take a bike to Hyde Park and be out for hours, sitting with trees, hanging around.

4

Great Hats

How many hats do I have? Probably a few hundred. You’re either a hat person or you’re not. I’m not a big fan of color coordination; I quite like things that clash. I’ve got a guy that sews on them and can cover them in fabric — I paint on them, I beat them, I set fire to them.

5

His Artwork

I’m making a lot of art out of cardboard, which I keep seeing popping up in galleries. People say my work is like Basquiat; I say I’m Basqui-gay. I’ve done this painting of Andy called “Andy Warhol Hates Me,” and I’ve put the quote of his: “I went to see Boy George at Madison Square Garden, and he’s really fat.”

6

Family

I lost my mum in March, which was a spiritual experience beyond anything I’ve ever had. I’ve got a picture of her on the stairs, so when I come in and out, I see her. We talk every day.

7

Yachting in Amalfi

Two or three years ago, I went with my manager, his wife and my ex-boyfriend — I don’t know why I did that. You’re in Italy, you’re eating cacio e pepe, and it was just heaven. I was like, I want a boat. I’m probably never going to get one, but I really loved being in that space.

8

His Mother’s Yellow Piggy Bank

My mum used to go out and buy stuffed parrots and things like that — she just loved bright, shiny things. The yellow piggy bank is the ugliest thing she loved. Every time I get some loose change, I put it in there.

9

Irish Sea Moss

I feel like it’s really been helping me with losing weight, and everyone keeps saying, “Your skin looks good.” I’m not vegan anymore, but I’m vegetarian mostly, and I like to eat clean. I use the handbag theory: If you stuff your handbag, it looks bulky. But if you just put a few things in, it looks nice.

10

His Music

I go back to: “What was I thinking when I was 17?” Obviously, I was in love with Jon, but I was also writing about my parents’ relationship. I had this weird, idealistic idea of what love was, and then I was 19 and didn’t really want to be in a relationship. It was all very confusing; I have to say, “poor Jon Moss.” I haven’t been in the music business since they stopped playing my music on the radio. What I do now is obviously so much better, and that’s a fact.