Kenny Goss thinks he and George Michael could "both have been dead" if they stayed together.
Kenny Goss and George Michael
The Texan art dealer was in a relationship with the late singer - who was found dead aged 53 at his home in December 2016 - from 1996 until 2009, during which both of them struggled with addiction.
Though Kenny claims he was advised not to end his romance with the 'Careless Whisper' singer as he was "the only reason" George stayed alive, he admits his own behaviour was just as destructive.
He said: "A psychiatrist told me once when I said 'What should I do?' and he said 'Kenny please don't leave', and something like 'You're the only reason he lives'. But I don't know, maybe we both would have been dead, who the hell knows?
"I certainly did my best to protect him, and he did his best to protect me from my alcoholism... he was very, very worried about me."
Even after they went their separate ways, Kenny and George stayed in contact and the former Wham! singer always worried about his ex-partner's alcoholism.
Speaking on UK TV show 'This Morning', he said: "I spoke to him maybe a month or so before [he passed] and we spoke about the Foundation... we just talked about normal things.
"Normally I spoke to George when he was in a good place. And one of the first things he'd always say to me was 'Darling, how is your recovery?' "
Though Kenny was left devastated by the 'Too Funky' hitmaker's passing, he takes comfort in knowing his former lover is now with his beloved mother Lesley, who passed away in 1997.
He said: "I'm doing really well, the thing that keeps me at peace is that I know he's with his mother. I know he loved her dearly, and his mother's birthday was on 24th December and he loved her dearly, as much as any son could love a mother, so he's with her now."
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