Queen star shut down Freddie Mercury’s ‘not brilliant’ album name suggestion

Queen star Brian May has said he shut down Freddie Mercury’s “not brilliant” album name suggestion. 

The guitarist, 77, recalled his time working with queer icon Mercury during an interview with MOJO, revealing that he once shot down one of the singer’s ideas for a record title inspired by Michael Jackson.

He told to the publication: “Deep down Freddie was one of the shyest people I’ve ever met, but he was so full of bluster you’d forget. 

“Freddie would always be excited, and his excitement would take over… He’d be so full of excitement he could hardly speak.”

‘It wasn’t one of his world-shattering ideas’

He shared that Mercury often came up with “different” ideas: “Freddie’s ideas were off the wall and cheeky and different – and we tended to encourage them”. 

“Sometimes the idea he brought in was brilliant, and sometimes not brilliant,” he said of the LGBTQ+ icon’s contributions to the group. 

May then recalled an idea Mercury had, inspired by Michael Jackson’s album “Bad”. 

“He came in one day and announced, ‘I’ve got this amazing idea. You know Michael Jackson has just put out this album called ‘Bad’ [1987]? Well, listen… What do you think about us calling our next album Good’?”

“We all looked at each other and said, ‘Well, maybe we should think about it, Freddie’. It wasn’t one of his world-shattering ideas, but looking back, maybe we were wrong…,” he shared. 

Mercury, who last year was named the UK’s all-time greatest queer icon in a Pride month poll, died in 1991 aged 45, from an Aids-related illness.  

Following his death, Mercury left a towering legacy that remains unmatched to this day. Over the course of his career, he redefined rock music for a new era – and he won an enormous legion of fans in the process, who to this day sing his praises.

Mercury was also a trailblazer in creating unapologetically queer moments that continue to influence artists today.

Share your thoughts! Let us know in the comments below, and remember to keep the conversation respectful.