You know the voice. It’s that warm, slightly raspy baritone that soundtracked every sensitive soul’s 1970s. But if you walked up to the man behind "Wild World" in a London restaurant in 1955 and called him Cat, he wouldn’t have a clue who you were talking about. Honestly, most people just assume "Cat Stevens" was the name on his birth certificate. It wasn't.
Cat Stevens birth name was actually Stephen Demetre Georgiou.
Born on July 21, 1948, he was the youngest child of a Greek Cypriot father, Stavros Georgiou, and a Swedish mother, Ingrid Wickman. They lived in a tiny flat above their family restaurant, the Moulin Rouge, right in the heart of London’s West End. It was a chaotic, musical, and smells-of-garlic kind of upbringing.
Why the World Doesn't Know Stephen Demetre Georgiou
Names are weird. They carry weight. For a kid growing up in post-war London with a Greek father and Swedish mother, "Stephen Georgiou" felt right at home in Soho, but it didn't exactly scream "International Pop Star" to the record executives of the 1960s.
By the time he was 15, Stephen was obsessed with the Beatles. He begged his dad for a guitar. He got one for £8 and started writing songs on the roof of the restaurant, looking out over the neon lights of Shaftesbury Avenue. But when he started playing gigs at Hammersmith College of Art, he didn't use his real name. He went by Steve Adams.
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Why Steve Adams? Basically, it was simple. It was clean. It was "pop." But it didn't stick.
The Birth of the "Cat"
The transition from Steve Adams to the moniker we all know happened around 1966. The story goes that a girlfriend told him he had eyes like a cat. At the time, he was trying to get a deal with Decca Records. He realized that "Stephen Demetre Georgiou" was a mouthful for a British DJ to pronounce, and "Steve Adams" was forgettable.
"Cat Stevens" had a ring to it. It was sleek. It was mysterious. It fit the vibe of the swinging sixties. Under this name, he exploded. "I Love My Dog" and "Matthew and Son" turned the son of a Greek restaurateur into a teen idol overnight.
The Spiritual Shift to Yusuf Islam
If you’ve followed his career, you know the "Cat" persona didn't last forever. In the late 70s, at the absolute height of his fame, he vanished. Well, he didn't vanish—he changed.
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After a near-death experience drowning off the coast of Malibu in 1975, he promised that if God saved him, he would work for God. His brother, David, later gave him a copy of the Qur'an. It changed everything. In December 1977, he formally converted to Islam.
In 1978, he dropped the "Cat Stevens" name entirely and became Yusuf Islam.
Yusuf is the Arabic version of Joseph. He chose it because he felt a deep connection to the story of Joseph in the Qur'an—a man who was lost and then found. He walked away from the music industry, auctioned off his guitars for charity, and dedicated himself to education and humanitarian work for nearly three decades.
The 2026 Perspective: Who is he today?
It’s been a long road from the Moulin Rouge restaurant. Today, he usually goes by Yusuf / Cat Stevens. It’s a bit of a compromise name, isn't it? He realized that while Yusuf is who he is, "Cat Stevens" is the portal through which millions of people connect with his message of peace.
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He’s still active, too. Despite some frustrating visa delays for his 2025/2026 "Cat on the Road to Findout" book tour in North America, his influence hasn't waned. He’s 77 now, and whether you call him Stephen, Steve, Cat, or Yusuf, the core of the man—that search for truth—remains the same.
- Birth Name: Stephen Demetre Georgiou
- First Stage Name: Steve Adams
- The Legend Name: Cat Stevens
- The Spiritual Name: Yusuf Islam
- The Current Identity: Yusuf / Cat Stevens
If you’re looking to dive deeper into his history, your best bet is to pick up his latest memoir or listen to the Tea for the Tillerman 2 reimagining. It’s the best way to hear how a boy named Stephen became a man named Yusuf, with a whole lot of "Cat" in between.
Actionable Insights for Fans
If you want to explore the "Stephen Georgiou" era of his life, look for his very early 1967 recordings. They have a distinct, brassy London pop sound that is worlds away from the acoustic folk of his later years. You can also visit the site of the old Moulin Rouge in Soho (it's not a restaurant anymore, but the building is still there) to get a feel for where the music started.
For those following his modern journey, his official website is the only reliable place to track the rescheduled 2026 tour dates, as third-party ticket sites often list "cancelled" when they are actually just "postponed" due to the visa issues he’s been vocal about.