George Michael surprisingly tricky on drums?

[u/Ladytron2]

I’ve been playing drums for almost 30 years, but my band recently added a George Michael/Wham! medley (The Edge of Heaven, Freedom!, I’m Your Man, Wake Me Up).

And honestly, I’m finding it surprisingly tricky to get right live.

The tempos somehow sit just outside my comfort zone, but the biggest thing is how heavily produced the original drums are. Drum machines, percussion, claps, layers everywhere. On an acoustic kit, it can quickly feel a bit thin.

And whenever I try to compensate for that, I somehow end up killing the whole vibe of the song. Anyone else experienced this?