George Michael's relatives paid tribute to the late pop icon on the first anniversary of his death by urging fans to "say those 'I love you's' out loud".

The 53-year-old singer died from natural causes on Christmas Day (25Dec), 2016, and his family members, including George's sisters Yioda and Melanie, and his father Jack, marked one year since his tragic passing with a touching letter posted on his website.

Explaining how emotional the past 12 months have been, they shared, "This year has been a series of new and tough challenges for those of us close and loyal to (Michael), not least of which was steeling ourselves this month to hear 'Last Christmas' and 'December Song' streaming out of shops, cars and radios, as it has done for decades, knowing he's no longer here with us, missing him."

"This Christmas will be hard without him," they continued, "but we know that we are not alone in our mourning the anniversary of his loss, and that the sadness of our wider family, and true friends, is shared by many of you.

"We are at 'that age' and realise that this year many of you will have had difficult losses too."

George's loved ones, who referred to him by his Greek nickname Yog, went on to reveal how they wanted devotees to honour the Faith hitmaker's memory.

"Yog, who loved Christmas, and always hoped it would snow... would want each of you that admired and loved him... to take a moment, raise a glass, enjoy his music and think of him fondly, making sure to enjoy your time with, and appreciate your family and friends...," read the message.

"If you can, in his memory this year, take a moment and a deep breath and say those 'I Love You's' out loud..."

George's boyfriend, Fadi Fawaz, also remembered his late lover on Monday (25Dec17) with his own tribute on social media.

He shared an artistic black-and-white photo of the pair's faces merged together with a poem featured on George's cheek.

"I will always miss you till the day I meet you," the first line of the poem read.

"It is what it is," Fadi captioned the post.

Meanwhile, one fan has taken it upon themselves to give George an unofficial star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame by adorning a blank plaque with his name and decorating it with hearts and flowers on Tuesday (26Dec17), reports TheBlast.com. The British singer never received the Los Angeles honour during his lifetime.