History

The History so far of Westlife...... (to be continued....)

The story begins a long long time ago in a town named Sligo in the West of Ireland. Three guys named Kian Egan, Mark Feehily and Shane Filan had performed in the school musical Grease together, and after their success on stage, had decided to form a band, called 6 as 1, and later changing their name to I.O.U The groups released a single "Together Girl Forever" in Ireland, and after limited success, Shane's mother, Mae, contacted the manager of Boyzone, Louis Walsh, to try and persuade him to take a look at the guys and to possibly sign them up. Although Louis was impressed he felt he didn't have the time to manage yet another band. But...luckily for us... he contacted Ronan Keating of Boyzone, who agreed to co-manage the new band with Louis. And so 'Rolo Management' was formed The lineup of I.O.U was changed - 3 members (Derek, Graham and Michael) being asked to leave, and auditions were then held in Dublin to find two new members for the group. Nicky Byrne and Bryan McFadden were eventually chosen...Westlife were born!

The group (who were originally known as Westside - their name having been changed by Ronan who felt that I.O.U was too boy band - esque) first supported the Backstreet Boys in Dublin, and then toured the UK and Ireland with Boyzone in November 1998. They stunned audiences on the Smash Hits Tour around the UK, winning "Best New Tour Act" at the Smash Hits Awards in November 1998.

However, the group were obliged to change their name from Westside to Westlife early in 1999 when it was discovered that a number of existing bands shared the same name.
Undeterred, Westlife went on to release their first single Swear it Again in April 1999 which went straight to the top of the British and Irish charts, becoming the biggest-selling debut single ever in Ireland.
So far Westlife have released seven singles in the UK, and their double A-side of I Have a Dream and Seasons in the Sun became the UK Christmas number 1 of 1999. Their eagerly-awaited debut album was released in the UK in November 1999 and has achieved triple platinum status. Winning Record of the Year for Flying Without Wings and having been nominated for two MTV Awards, Westlife have achieved much acclaim and enjoyed a lot of success. Already in their brief career Westlife have broken records as fast as they have set them - their new album, Coast To Coast went triple platinum in Ireland after only one day of release, and their seventh single release, My Love, gave them a place in chart history, as they became the only band in UK chart history to have their first seven singles debut at number 1. Their next single, Angel's Wings, is already tipped to be the next UK Christmas number 1.

With soulful harmonies, angelic voices, drop-dead good looks, and the strong management team of Louis Walsh and Ronan Keating behind them, their plans to break the USA this year mean that Westlife look set to enjoy chart success well into the new millennium!