Adele was forced to restart her tribute to George Michael during this year’s Grammys, insisting she “couldn’t mess this up for him” when she was hit with technical issues.
The ‘Hello’ singer was selected to perform a tribute to George during this year’s awards bash, following his death over Christmas, at the age of 50.
She chose to perform an orchestral version of his track, ‘Fastlove’, but early in the performance, she stopped singing when she suffered microphone issues and, after dropping an F-bomb, told the musicians on stage with her that she wanted to start again.
Addressing the crowd, and viewers at home, Adele explained: “I know it’s live TV, I’m sorry. I can’t do it again like last year.
“I’m sorry for swearing and sorry for starting again, can we please start it again? I’m sorry, I can’t mess this up for him. I’m sorry.”
She then went on to finish the performance, while images of George throughout his career in music flashed up on the screen behind her.
The “last year” she was referring to in her speech was her performance during the 2016 Grammy Awards, when she made headlines for suffering technical issues as she sang ‘All I Ask’.
This year, she also opened the show with a flawless performance of her song ‘Hello’, before later returning for her tribute to the ‘Careless Whisper’ singer.
Throughout her career, Adele has spoken of her admiration for George Michael, even dressing up as him at her birthday party two years ago.