Freddie Mercury is one of the world’s favorite musicians. For the better part of his life, he was the lead singer of the incredibly famous rock band Queen, and though his life was short, he certainly lived it large!

Before he was Freddie Mercury, a legend and icon, he was born as Farrokh Bulsara in Zanzibar on September 5, 1946. However, his parents were from western India, and the family spoke Parsi in their home.

Many people don’t know that Freddie spent most of his childhood in India and did not move to England until he was eighteen. Freddie formed several bands in India with his friends and took piano classes, which started his love for music.

Upon arriving in England, Freddie continued his education and played in several different bands without much success. But in April 1970, everything changed when he joined the band Smile with Roger Taylor and Brian May.

Just one year later, John Deacon joined the gang, and they changed their name to Queen: the band that would soon be one of the most famous in the world.

Freddie was so unbelievably talented. His voice was powerful and serene; he had electric dance moves, a huge personality, and the ability to engage tens of thousands of people simultaneously.

Behind the scenes, Freddie was a beautiful songwriter and wrote 10 of the 17 songs on Queen’s greatest hits album. While other members of the band wrote songs as well, it seemed to be Freddie’s that usually made it to the number one spot on the charts.

Even though his career was a wild success, Mercury struggled in his personal life. At the time, being homosexual was only recently decriminalized in the UK, and Freddie did not announce his sexuality until much later in his life.

Although he had many loving relationships, such as with his first partner and forever friend, Mary Austin, as well as his last partner, the man he called his husband, Jim Hutton, Freddie was known in the tabloids for being promiscuous and a wild partier.

Those who knew him personally knew a shy, introverted, and kind man. His stage persona was just that, a way to express his creativity and his love for music.

Freddie Mercury, while being one of the best performers and singers of a generation, was wildly misunderstood. And unfortunately, he did not have a long enough life to show the world his true self as he sadly died from AIDS at only 45 years old.

However, Freddie’s energy, songs, voice, and super cool moves will live on forever as he is still one of the most believed musicians of all time!