Old news August
From five to four, yet fans want more
He was always the quiet one in the background, leaving his more outspoken
bandmates to face the limelight.
But ever since Westlife heart-throb Mark Feehily admitted to being gay, the
spotlight has come to rest on him.
When The New Paper spoke to him over the phone from London, he sounded
positive and energetic.
'My fans have accepted me for who I am, and I am still doing the one thing
that I love the most, and that is singing,' said the 26-year-old.
Following Feehily's public outing, Lance Bass of US boy band 'N Sync also
declared that he was gay in July.
Does Feehily think he has started a trend?
The dark-haired crooner laughed it off. He was more candid about how Westlife
was getting on without former member Brian McFadden.
'We've settled very comfortably as a four-member band. Bryan will always be a
friend, but I really don't think we miss him anymore.'
This year marks the eighth anniversary of the Irish band, who will perform in
Singapore for the third time on 8 Sep, as part of their Face To Face Asian
Tour.
With their growing fan base, Westlife seems set to remain on the scene for a
few more years.
Feehily said: 'We're not like the Spice Girls with Geri (Halliwell) and Take
That with Robbie (Williams) - great bands that have met with internal
disagreements and fallen apart.'
'The boys and I have been friends since we were 10 and understand one another.'
However, he already has a Plan B should things go wrong.
'I'll sing my days away,' he said. 'Be it in theatre, or just a regular pub,
I know that I will always be out there singing and performing.'
----------------------------------------------
added: 30th August 2006, source: The Electric New Paper
Interview Louis Walsh
LOUIS WALSH is the Truman Capote of his generation - relentlessly observant,
murderously witty and shamelessly catty. Often in thesame sentence . . .
The Mouth of Kiltimagh persona isn't an act. Sometimes Louis can't help
himself. His lacerating bon mots send irresistible signals to the regions of
the brain located somewhere between the comedy cortex and and the cortex that
controls cruelty.
"Daniel O'Donnell," he declares, "is the greatest pile of shite." This is just
the start of a four-hour breathless bitchathon. "It is nothing to do with him;
he just cannot sing. He cannot dance. I saw him doing a rock 'n' roll thing on
TV and it was, unintentionally, the funniest thing I've ever seen. He had a
pink jacket on. He was dressed like Liberace. He is very successful, but you
don't have to be that talented to be successful. I meet him all the time.
He knows that I think he's crap. I call him Danielle."
How would you change him if you managed him?
"I'd stop him singing. Or dancing. Especially thedancing," the original
popbitch barks.
He is not a fan of Bob Geldof either. "I think the 45 people who went to see
him in Rome recently were very, very brave," Louis laughs, referring to poor
Geldof's disastrous concert in Italy. "We have that many people in the loo at
a
Westlife gig. I don't like Geldof's music at all. He is a Mick Jagger
impersonator."
Dazzlingly scandalous, Louis casually reveals conversations that were possibly
never meant for public consumption. However, since he does so with a wit worthy
of Dorothy Parker or Tallulah Bankhead, you have to adore him. When Louis said
on Celebrity X Factor that contestant Gillian McKeith "looks like she was hit
by a bus", he was merely saying what most of us were thinking. (Gillian later
told the Sun that Walsh needed "a super-charged enema".) Likewise the
notorious comment about rotund Green Party TD Dan Boyle on Celebrity You're a
Star . . .
"I couldn't understand the uproar when I said, 'Get rid of the fat one',"
he smiles now. "I thought he would have taken it in fun. It wasn't meant to
be a personal thing. And the fat one took it personally and threw a wobbler.
Wobbly threw a wobbler! I was just trying to be funny and he had absolutely
no sense of humour. I think all politicians are the same. I don't believe any
of them. I don't trust any of them. Generally Irish politicians are the
oddest-looking shower of people I have ever seen."
Even
Nicky Byrne from Westlife's father-in-law?
"I think they are all awful," he reiterates. "Absolutely no star quality, the
lot of them."
Mr Star Quality, Louis Walsh is never boring. Up close and personal, he isn't
the passive-aggressive control freak you might have expected. On the contrary,
sometimes he can be rather fragile and gentle and vulnerable, like the rest of
us. He has certainly mellowed over the years, and with it comes a more human
side.
His identity has emerged slowly. And there is something of the little boy who
can't quite believe how successful he has become by picking pop songs for his
bands to turn into international hits for him.
He isn't one for convoluted Jungian psychobabble or cosmic hogwash, as a rule.
But that is not to say Louis Walsh doesn't know his inner self . . .
"I suppose we are all insecure in our own little way," he says. "I'm kind of
shy underneath it all, but people don't know that. The real me is not the
person in the papers. I'm not as insecure now, because I have been so
successful. I just think people didn't know me years ago. It was probably a
confidence thing with me," he adds, softly. "I don't care any more what people
think of me. I don't want to be Mr Nice Guy, because being Mr Nice Guy is
boring anyway."
I hate to be rude, Louis, but you are a nice guy.
We have a weekly late lunch in Expresso Bar or the Four Seasons in Dublin and
Mr Walsh is always the personification of charming niceness . . . even when he
is mercilessly ripping the dunderheads off all and sundry in the music business.
"Deep down, I am nice," he grimaces, like I was personally administering a
super-charged enema. "The people who really know me know that I am, yeah.
But sometimes I portray something else. If I was watching me on TV I would
probably think: 'He's a little bollix. Who does he think he is?'"
Does your mother ever say to you to be nicer on TV?
"No. My mother doesn't care as long as I don't slag Kiltimagh. She doesn't mind
what I say."
Maureen Walsh at 75 is, he says, young at heart. "She doesn't care as long as
we're all happy and in good health," he adds. "I am only one of her nine kids.
She loves life."
Maureen Walsh wanted her eldest child Louis to join the priesthood. The
greatest pop manager in Irish history was an altar boy in Kiltimagh. He
couldn't hack the early mornings (often mass would start and he'd be running
out of the house with Maureen roaring after him) and the kneeling on the
cold marble.
Clearly, the Irish priesthood's loss is popular music's gain. "I am just a
man," he claims, "who understands pop." This is something of an understatement.
He has had more number one records than any Irish manager in popular history.
He created bands like Boyzone,
Westlife and Girls Aloud and made them into
global phenomena. He made Shayne Ward an international star.
His father Frank died 10 years ago. Louis shakes his head when I ask him does
he ever get sad that he wasn't around to see his son become so successful.
"No, my mother does," he answers.
"I don't think about things like that. I am not really reflective. I just
enjoy every day. Life is so short that I really think you should enjoy it.
I went through a lot of bad times with bands and I was worried about money
then," he adds.
"I don't need a lot of money now because I don't drink, I don't smoke and I
don't take drugs. I have never taken drugs in my life."
A firm believer in loyalty, Louis went to support his old friend
(and co-manager of Boyzone) John Reynolds at his Midlands Festival recently
in Co Meath. He delighted in how well Shane Lynch did on the recent Love
Island reality show. He keeps in regular contact with
Brian McFadden.
He hasn't lost touch with the
ex-Westlife star, nor with himself. Louis has
the emotional intelligence to admit that he is more proud of his friendship
with Joan Rivers than of any other celebrity contacts he has. He laughs.
"She is 73 and she is brilliant. She is a great woman and a very nice woman
off camera and off stage. She is a one-off."
You could say the same about Louis Walsh. The shy kid from the country has
made himself a superstar. He is arguably the first Irish band manager to
cultivate celebrity status internationally. His reputation has even secured
him his own song - Louis Walsh by Irish band the Revs.
He has been making hay while the sun shines. "I put the money in the bank
and I buy property because I know this is not going to last forever," he says.
He also spends his hard-earned dosh on his art and photography (Donald Teskey
and Herb Ritts) collection. He admits, modestly, to not knowing that much about
art. Yet he can talk freely and eloquently about it for hours. "I like Andy
Warhol," he says. He had a purple Mao and a red Jagger delivered to his
apartment in the Yoo Building in London the day I met him.
"There are Irish art collectors who have millions and millions of pounds'
worth of art," Louis adds. "I have a very small collection. It is what I like.
I don't buy for money or for investment." Ask his opinion on Irish art,
however, and, inevitably, he doesn't disappoint . . .
"Graham Knuttel is good," he begins. "I think he is like the Stock Aitken &
Waterman of the Irish art business: quick, fast, get them out. He is not
Louis le Brocquy or [Tony] O'Malley, who are the Neil Young or the Van Morrison
of Irish art. I think Guggi is good but I just don't want to spend my life
looking at bowls on the wall."
There are loads of new Irish artists who just need a break and need a new
gallery behind them, he continues, adding that the Taylor Gallery is fantastic
in Dublin because it nurtures the artists. He has no intention of managing
Irish artists. "I know nothing about it," he laughs. "It would be like an art
gallery trying to manage a boy band."
His incomparable success at the latter has meant that he has been able to buy
substantial investment properties around the world. Louis has homes in Dublin,
London and Miami. He is a regular visitor to his bolthole in the States.
What has Miami got that Kiltimagh hasn't? "Sunshine. I'm anonymous there.
I can do anything I want. I can walk down the beach."
So are you lying out on the beach lathered in Factor 50?
"I don't do beaches," he laughs. "I just sit in the shade." His milk-white
complexion corroborates this statement. "I just like the vibe in Miami. I
love looking out at the ocean. I don't know why. I'd hate to live in Kiltimagh.
All they do down there is drink and watch GAA and talk about politics."
Has big money changed you?
"I do it for the fun and because I love it," he answers without blinking.
"I don't do it for the money. Money hasn't changed me at all. I am coming to
this restaurant for the last 20 years," he says, looking around Expresso in
St Mary's Road, Ballsbridge.
"I used to come here with Johnny Logan when it was Cora's. I do the same
things and I have the same friends for years. You know that. What else! What
else! Ask me anything you want to ask me."
What age did you lose your virginity at?
"I don't know. I'd say early 20s. I forget." Ah, c'mon.
"I am not telling you. I forget!" Was it that memorable?
"I forget!"
Unforgettably, Louis gained additional renown by making up the odd story or
two about his bands to keep them in the papers: sensational falsehoods like
Westlife in near-fatal plane crashes and Stephen Gately getting
engaged to Baby Spice Emma Bunton.
That fecker Walsh knows nothing and he thinks he knows everything, say his
enemies, but in reality he is actually a thoroughly likeable and charming
culchie with a pop brain bigger than most record companies put together.
He has the status of grand fromage but without the cheesiness of limo-riding
and private jet-hopping self-importance that comes with it. He never acts like
a big-shot designer-clad asshole. He never even dresses like one. Louis Walsh
is the least narcissistic multimillionaire you could meet.
"I don't have any look," he laughs. "My image is having no image. I don't
want or need a stylist. I am not trying to be anybody else."
He has the attention span of a lightning bolt. His Blackberry bleeps with
text messages, and stars like Tara Palmer-Tomkinson ringing 24/7. The X Factor
with Simon Cowell and Sharon Osbourne just started again.
"There were always talent shows, like Opportunity Knocks," he muses. "I
watched it as a kid and I knew it was rigged. I had a band Chips on it." The
X Factor was watched by 8.5 million viewers last weekend and the English
papers can't get enough of Walsh.
As he pushes a salad around his plate (The X Factor bosses want him, he says,
to lose some weight) he fields calls like a seasoned polymath/media whore.
He is almost Swiftian in his satirical wit.
He laughs, saying that his former You're a Star co-judgeLinda Martin thinks
the Arctic Monkeys "are up in the zoo and they're freezing. And she is worried
about them."
Despite the fact that his fortunes have soared and his stock has never
been higher, perhaps typically, Louis has not forgotten the hard times.
Those dark moments in the past when record companies wouldn't take his calls
and nobody seemed particularly bothered with his acts.
"I had showbands who played to nobody," he recalls. "I remember I had Johnny
Logan and he had just won the Eurovision," he says, referring to Logan winning
the 25th Eurovision Song Contest, in 1980, in front of 500 million TV viewers.
"And he wasn't playing to big crowds around the country - I just couldn't
understand it. I thought he was absolutely great at thetime. I think Joe
Dolan was our first Irish pop star ever, and one of the greatest."
What do you sing in the shower?
"I don't do showers. I sing in the bath in the evening. Suds up to here!"
the king of pop froth demonstrates. "I usually put on my favourite album,
Ziggy Stardust by Bowie, and relax."
Louis is a pop tart with the golden touch. He knows what makes a star and
what will sell. And record companies will sign up a homeless cat to a
five-album deal if Louis Walsh said the moggy could sing. But enough about
Nadine. He knows his pop, obviously, and is a font of all knowledge when it
comes to music. He adores Lou Reed, David Bowie, Van Morrison, Marianne
Faithfull, Connie Francis and Frank Sinatra.
He acknowledges that the best boy band ever were the Beatles. He muses on
how pop history could have been changed had he managed the Fab Four.
"Well I tell you, I wouldn't have commited suicide," he says, referring to
Brian Epstein, who died of a drug overdose on August 27, 1967. I would be
still out there hanging out with them. I'd still be alive. Abbey Road was
one of my favourite albums. You cannot stop creative people being what
they are. I like outspoken people."
Was Kerry Katona the Yoko Ono influence of
Westlife?
"No. I just think Kerry and
Brian were too young to get married. They wouldn't
listen to anybody. They wouldn't listen to me. They shouldn't have got
married." There is a pause and then a knowing wink. " . . . to each other".
He laughs. "But who am I to tell them?
Brian is really happy. We are best
friends. We are probably closer and more honest than we ever were. I don't
know any band that gets on as well as me and
Westlife and
Brian."
His friend, producer Bill Hughes, once said of Louis: "He hates earnestness.
He hates the tortured artist syndrome. He hates anything that smacks of
negativity or obession with credibility."
"Robbie Williams is someone who is craving credibility," Louis says - and it's
worth pointing out that our interview took place before Williams told The Sun
that he reckoned Louis wanted to sleep with him; comments, Walsh told me over
the phone, that the pop impresario is just laughing off. "I know exactly who
Robbie is. He is a good showman but he is not overly talented." I recall being
with Louis in 2002 late one night in a hotel foyer in London when an agitated
Robbie Williams came over intent on a row with Mr Walsh. "I know what he is
about. He has not got great talent. He has got great songwriters and great
people around him. He is just part of that whole machine. Whereas George
Michael or Elton John are genuinely real, real talent. George Michael is
probably smoking too much dope. He is a bit lazy and a bit insecure but he is
a major talent. That's why his tour sold out."
How would you explain yourself to a Martian?
"I'm not this person who puts bands together to make money," Louis says. "I
don't do it for money. We're doing a movie now, for example. Me and
Simon
[Cowell] and some people not a million miles from your paper. And while
the money will potentially be bigger than anything I've done to date, I'm
just loving the buzz of doing it and putting it together."
"I like to find someone with talent who I can sell," he continues. "And they're
happy doing it and I'm happy doing it. It's very hard to get people with talent
who work hard and keep their feet on the ground. There's so much bullshit in
the whole music and entertainment business."
And it is the people "around the artists who change them - the stylists and the
tour manager and the businesses. Then they all want to be credible."
Shedloads of money and gargantuan success haven't blunted his ambition. "I
do want to do one more boy band by the way," he admits. "And I'm going to do
it next year. It will be five boys. That's allI know."
Does that mean you are making the funeral arrangements for
Westlife? "Oh no.
Westlife have crossed over. Their audience is not young kids any more.
Westlife can go on as long as they want because their audience are mammies and
daddies now.
"
Westlife are like the Bee Gees," he says. "And they are happier as a
four-piece, even though I am still really good friends with
Brian McFadden.
Honestly! Honestly! Honestly!" he roars like his mum getting him up for
altar boy duties at mass.
"There is absolutely no bullshit there.
Westlife are even doing a duet
with Delta," he says referring to Brian's chanteuse girlfriend Delta Goodrem.
His trusty Blackberry whirrs again. It is Simon Cowell. And then Rebecca Loos.
And then
Shane Filan from Westlife. Louis blows the froth off yet
another cappuccino and looks out the window of this famously trendy Dublin cafe.
He has not forgotten his youth in Kiltimagh. Nor, I suspect, will he ever.
He recalls reading about the Rolling Stones and the Beatles, Dusty Springfield
and the Beach Boys and, he says, "wanting to be involved. I wanted a taste of
it. That's what drove me and excited me when I was young: pop music".
It is still exciting him all these years later. What age are you?
"I'm whatever age you want me to be!" he whoops. "Say I'm 50 if you want."
Fifty going on 15, popbitch Louis Walsh will regale you with how the local
newsagent in Kiltimagh would order a single copy of New Musical Express
specially from London for him when he was 13. And how on Saturdays,
Louis and his li'l sister Evelyn would take the magic bus to buy the new
releases from the Beach Boys or Abba.
He also remembers being a boarder at St Nathy's College in Co Roscommon, as
like being in prison. He was equally unenthusiastic about following his father
Frank into working in a bakery and on their farm. "I hated all that. My father
was a farmer and he worked at the bakery. I just wanted to get out of there."
How would you have felt if you had ended up working in the bakery in
Kiltimagh? "I believe anybody can do anything they want," he smiles, "at a
price. You have to give up your personal life sometimes. But anybody can do
anything they want if they really try."
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added: 27th August 2006, source: Sunday Independent
Cover Story: Facing up to Westlife
by Terrina Hussein
Westlife’s nicky fesses up to the boy band way of life.
After a four months break, one of the biggest groups is back on the fast
track to world –wide musical domination.
Westlife took a well deserved break from the limelight, after the success of
their 2004 tribute cover album to Frank Sinatra, Allow Us To Be Frank, in
which time Nicky, Kian, Shane and Mark took time out to rejuvenated their
batteries.
It was their longest break since the boys self titled debut album in 1999
catapulted them to boy-band superstardom. The departure of member Bryan
McFadden in 2004 didn’t dampen the remaining boys spirit in the slightest.
And after six multi-platinum albums in the UK, numerous Brit and MTV awards,
12 Number Ones and 35 million albums sold over their seven year career, they
still insist that the four months break was too long.
“We had nearly four months off and it felt like three years,” laughs Nicky,
“the break made us realise how much we wanted to start work again. At the end
of it I couldn’t wait to get back into the studio.”
Their seventh album sees them teaming up once again with long term
collaborator and friend, Steve Mac, and Swedish hit-makers The Location
(Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys, Nsync), to release their latest venture,
Face To Face.
The album features the boys taking on three of the most popular tracks of
all time.
The first single is their remake of Josh Groban’s You Raise Me Up where they
gave it an Irish feel by adding bagpipes to the track.
That was quickly followed by another heartbreaker and chart-maker, When You
Tell Me That You Love Me, a duet with Diana Ross.
Their third single from Face To Face is an original song, Amazing, which
sees the boys do what they do best: soppy, heart wrenching love ballads.
Also included is their version of The Eagle’s Desperado.
Fans won’t be worried, because the rest of the album is full of original
tracks, the sort that Westlife does best, with enough happy pop tunes and love
songs to tickle everyone’s boy band fancy.
New tracks include That’s Where You Find Love, She’s Back, Colour My World,
In This Life, Heart Without A Home, Hit You With The Real Thing, Change Your
Mind and Maybe Tomorrow.
Recording for Face to Face was spread throughout Ireland, Sweden and London,
but Westlife aren’t tired yet. They’re already in the midst of their world
promo tour, with Malaysia being a possible new addition to their tour
destinations… if Westlife member, Nicky has anything to do with it.
Buzz caught up with Westlife member Nicky, to find out what’s up with one of
the most popular boy bands in the universe.
How’s the tour been so far?
Great, but tiring! It’s been a good time though, the crowd seems to really be
enjoying themselves every time we play. It’s amazing for me to see that,
Westlife’s been together for almost eight years now, and we’re still packing
them in.
Where’ve you guys played?
So far, we’ve played the U.K, Ireland and South Africa. Our shows have an
amazing feel when we play the open air at castles around England. We hit
Asia soon and then we’ll be heading for Australia next.
Where would you say has the best audiences?
Well, since I’m Irish, I’ll have to say Ireland! Playing home is fantastic,
the crowd go crazy. We’ve never played Australia though, so we’re looking
forward to that.
How different would you say asian fans are compared to western fans?
It’s been six years since we last played in Asia, so it’s been too long, we’re
due for a return. But what I can remember about Asian fans is that they were a
little more polite when they meet you, but when they’re at the concert, they
go crazy, they really do! They show that they’re enjoying themselves by
singing along to the songs.
Over 30 million albums sold in your career with westlife – what does that mean to you?
Well, in a way it tells us that we’ve made it in the industry. But while
saying that, we also have to remember that there’s no room for complacency.
You’re only as good as your last album. There is always room for improvement.
Perhaps when you’ve sold 60 million you can sit back a little and relax, but
not now, there’s still so much more we can accomplish. But it is a proud
feeling. It’s something we didn’t know we could achieve. But the fact that
we’ve lasted this long, having overcome so many things like Brian leaving,
and we continue to forge forward shows us we’ve got a lot more kick left.
We’re not finished yet!
Would you guys ever look for a new member?
No, I don’t think we’ll ever have a new member. We’ve managed to sustain
ourselves very happily as a four piece group. Besides, I’d much rather
split finances four ways than five ways!
What would you do if this whole ride stopped tomorrow?
We just finished our six months break, so I think I’d take a year off if it
all stopped tomorrow. I’d enjoy my life with my wife, my dog, and hopefully
by that time, have a little family too. I’d like to stop and take a breath and
think long and hard about what Westlife has achieved. Then I’d start all over
and do something completely different like golf, because, lets face it, we’re
never going to be as successful individually as we were with Westlife as a
group. And I’ve always wanted to be the best, never mediocre. So I think I’d
put that whole group thing aside and say that was then, and this is now.
Your last two albums have been predominantly covers, have you been stalling
- when are you going to hit us with another original sure winner?
We have been very cover driven lately. But there are so many great old songs
that are being remade, and that’s just where we are right now. As far as
writing original stuff goes, Westlife has been lucky to have such success that
we can’t afford to be mediocre anymore. We have to ensure that every track we
come up with is a hit. There are lots of people out there willing us to fail,
and even the media can be against you. But the fans, you can’t fool them.
In all your travels, which country do you think has the prettiest girls?
That’s a hard question! There are lots of pretty girls everywhere. But I think
I’m going to have to go with Sweden. Yup, Sweden has the most pretty girls,
I think.
Do you ever get sick of being called a boyband?
Not really. Our fan base isn’t just the young, though, anymore. We’ve won over
a lot of the older fans with our cover tracks. The boyband stigma is always
attached, but whether we’re a boyband, or boys in a band, it doesn’t bother
us at all.
Tell us a bit about the upcoming asian tour?
Touring always is the best part of what we do. And as for our upcoming Asian
tour, we have a couple of surprises in store. We’re going to get quite
raunchy, so even if you’re not a Westlife fan, there’s something to enjoy!
it looks like malaysia’s not on your tour itinerary …
Really? Are you sure? That seems strange. I know we have a really big fan
base there. We’ll speak to our agent and get that changed.
We’ll keep you to your word …
I’m sure we’ll be seeing you guys down in Malaysia soon!
Face to Face is currently available under Sony BMG, from all leading
record store.
A quickie with Nicky
Best thing about being a westlife member?
Travelling the world.
I feel sexiest when …
I’m naked!
I’m happiest when …
I’m naked with my wife!
Pussycat dolls or hillary duff?
Pussycat Dolls, because there’s six of them.
Life is about ….
Enjoying it, not stressing, believing and living your dreams.
----------------------------------------------
added: 25th August 2006, source: The Malay Mail
Delta joins up with Westlife
Brian McFadden may have ditched Westlife, but his girlfriend Delta Goodrem has
no qualms about working with them. She sings All Out Of Love with them on
their next LP. Is she trying to tell Bri something?
----------------------------------------------
added: 25th August 2006, source: The Mirror
Boyband to get off their butts
By Juliana June Rasul
Has Westlife really been around for eight years? You bet.
While the average boyband has a lifespan of about five years, these unlikely
contenders for pop chart longevity have survived the loss of a member and their
shunning of slickly choreographed moves to become the only survivor of the
boyband crop of the late '90s.
"It is quite long for a band like Westlife to be doing what we do," said
member Kian Egan in a phone interview with Today from his home in Sligo,
Ireland.
The former quintet — now a foursome made up of Egan, Shane Filan, Mark
Feehily and Nicky Byrne — will hold their third concert here next month at
the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
Westlife have seven albums to their name, 14 No 1 singles in the United
Kingdom alone and have collaborated with the likes of Donny Osmond, Donna
Summer and Mariah Carey.
"I never imagined we'd be together so long, you know?" said Egan, 26. "I
thought we'd get three or four years out of it and then I'd just travel the
world and surf."
He speculated that the reason Westlife are still around is that, in other
"male vocal groups" (read: boybands), "one guy always thinks it's all about
him and wants to go solo".
Like Robbie Williams, Justin Timberlake and, well, former Westlifer
Bryan McFadden?
"The thing with Bryan was that the band didn't want to break up, so we
made sure to just go ahead and keep on recording and touring," Egan said.
McFadden's decision to leave the group, he noted, was a professional
choice and had nothing to do with any dissension in the ranks.
"He was a very important part of the band so, of course, it was
something we didn't want to happen," he said. "But we still hang out, so it's
all right."
Besides losing a member, Westlife also gracefully rode out a potential
scandal last year when Feehily announced he was in a relationship with fellow
boyband member Kevin McDaid of V.
Egan declined to talk about Feehily's relationship, though he did say it is a
lively bunch of family and friends that join them on tour these days.
"There's Mark's boyfriend, the wives and girlfriends, so it's really fun,"
he said. "We're definitely more family-oriented now, not party-oriented."
Byrne is married to the daughter of the current Prime Minister of Ireland,
Bertie Ahern, while Filan is married to childhood sweetheart Gillian Walsh.
For their third world tour, which kicked off in February in Europe, Egan
promises an "energetic, powerful concert" that won't involve them merely
sitting on stools, a habit they were so fond of that their first world tour
in 2001 was unofficially nicknamed "The No Stools Tour". "Everybody who loves
pop music will love the concert," said Egan.
And how long does he think the group will stay together?
"We enjoy it so much, and the fans enjoy it so much, and we love the
lifestyle of course," he said, laughing. "I don't think we're going to
stop anytime soon."
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added: 11th August 2006, source: Channel News Asia
3rd Anniversary
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added: 9th August 2006
Nothing to serious
BOTH bands can be described as musical megastars, but Shane Filan of
Westlife says his group and fellow countrymen U2 are really "just typical
Irish lads who love music and like a beer".
Filan, whose band has sold 40 million albums worldwide, says Irish musicians
do not take themselves too seriously.
"I think that is why we get on so well with Australians, because you guys are
the same,'' he says.
"Anyone being pretentious or big-headed is quickly brought down to earth.''
He says he admires the way U2 was still "so grounded'', despite the band's
success.
"I was out at a bar in Dublin recently having a few pints and Bono and his
mates arrived and he was quick to come over and say hello,'' Filan says.
"He is so laidback, despite the fact that those guys have been mega successful
and now are very, very rich.
"Larry, U2's drummer, contacted us and asked for our autographs because
his girlfriend is a big fan of ours. We could not believe that, because
we are such great fans of theirs.''
Renowned for big ballads and sweet soul harmonies, Westlife was formed in
Dublin in 1998.
Despite little radio support in Australia, the band has a huge following here
and its album Face To Face is nearing double platinum status, thanks in
part to an appearance on Dancing With the Stars earlier this year on a
packed promotional trip.
"I am really happy to have broken through in Australia at last,'' Filan says.
"My brother is a doctor in Melbourne, so I feel like I have a connection
with the place.''
The singer, who wants it known the Socceroos were "robbed'' at the World Cup,
says he and his bandmates have just started work on a new album.
"We always release an album a year. We just love what we do,'' he says.
"I am proud of what we have achieved along the way.
"Having said that, it could all end tomorrow, so you have to work hard w
hile you can.''
During their career the members of Westlife have met the stars of stage and
screen, but one particular meeting still stands out for them.
"We got to meet the late Pope, the one before this new guy, and that was just
an amazing experience for a Roman Catholic boy in Ireland,'' he says.
"My mum was so proud of me, more so than for most other things we have
achieved.''
Despite conquering markets throughout the world, Filan admits his act still struggles to gain a significant following in the US.
"I think a lot of it has to do with politics in the American music scene,''
he says.
"They love promoting their own acts and artists from out-of-the-way places
like Ireland and Australia have to face extra hurdles to crack it there.
That makes the success of U2 there even more admirable.
"Look at Robbie Williams, he is a massive performer everywhere except the
US -- it does not seem to worry him though and it really doesn't bother us.
"We are proud of our music and what we do and that is all that matters, really.''
Filan regards his bandmates as survivors after coping with the sudden
departure of Bryan McFadden, who left Westlife to pursue a solo career and is
now dating Australian singer Delta Goodrem.
They also feared that many young female fans might abandon them after member
Mark Feehily declared he was gay.
Yet Westlife continues to enjoy huge sales and sold-out concerts.
A feature of any of the band's performances is the number of cover songs.
The current tour has included versions of songs by Michael Jackson, Billy Joel,
Justin Timberlake, Robert Palmer and The Pussycat Dolls.
"Look, a great song is a great song no matter who wrote it,'' Filan says.
"We really just love to sing those kinds of songs.''
While the singer admits he has contemplated a solo album, he says he would
hate to leave Westlife.
"I don't think it would be as much fun doing it on your own,'' he says.
"We are now a real gang and have shared some great times together, plus we
love each other's company and honestly, I know I keep saying it, but we
really just love to sing together.''
Apart from their own recordings, the Westlife lads have developed a reputation
for working in tandem with some of the great female vocalists. Past
collaborations include sessions with Mariah Carey, Diana Ross, Donna
Summer and Lulu.
Filan predicts big things for one particular female vocalist.
"I think Delta Goodrem is set to become one of the world's major recording
artists,'' he says.
"We had never met and talked until recently. We all went out and had a few
drinks together for Bryan's birthday.
"She is gorgeous and a really nice person as well.
"I have had a chance to listen to some of her new material and she is hot.
"I think she is a much better singer than Mariah Carey, for example, and we
have worked with her.''
Westlife plays Rod Laver Arena September 20. Bookings: 132 849.
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added: 7th August 2006, source: Herald Sun
Westlife signed and framed Platinum Award on auction
As if jumping out a plane wasn't enough for S.I.R.F., Kian has kindly arranged
for Westlife to donate this unique framed and signed award of their 7 albums
to date. It is currently on auction on eBay, click
here.
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added: 4th August 2006, source: sirf.org
Westlife star puts best foot forward for skydive
DAREDEVIL wannabe Kian Egan insisted that he would be first to jump from a
plane three miles up in his debut freefall skydive at the Irish Parachute
Club in Co Offaly this week.
The Westlife singer, who ignored a plea from girlfriend Jody Albert not to go
flying without wings, agreed to the charity jump with pals though it will be
his first-ever attempt.
"I want Jody to be there", said Kian. "And lots of fans too." He said that by
the time Jody and his mum tried to talk him out of the dive it was too late
to pull out even if he wanted to.
He had already announced that he was doing the jump to raise funds for victims
of two recent earthquakes and a tsunami on Indonesia's main island, Java.
"Whatever fears I may have about the jump it's nothing compared to the ribbing
I would have to take if I didn't do it," he said.
Westlife colleagues Nicky Byrne, Mark Feehily and Shane Filan have agreed to
sponsor the jump at Clonbulloge to the tune of €1,000 each.
They were moved to help the people of Java after the islanders helped them
last year when a friend of Kian's injured a leg while on holiday there.
The fund has a website,
www.sirf.org.
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added: 1st August 2006, source: Unison.ie
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