Westlife is an Irish pop band, originally made up of Shane Filan, Mark Feehily,  Kian Egan, Nicky Byrne, and Brian McFadden.  Egan, Feehily, and Filan had been a member of the pop group IOYOU.  Louis Walsh, manager of the boy band, Boyzone, had gone to hear the band;

Westlife

We have what we need from the record company but a lot more of the other stuff we have to sort out ourselves. . . . They know we have the same aim as them which is to just have the best quality songs and pictures and videos that we can.

Building Something New

Westlife is an Irish pop band, originally made up of Shane Filan, Mark Feehily,  Kian Egan, Nicky Byrne, and Brian McFadden.  Egan, Feehily, and Filan had been a member of the pop group IOYOU.  Louis Walsh, manager of the boy band, Boyzone, had gone to hear the band;  the band did not make the cut to receive a recording contract, but Egan, Feehily, and Filan were pulled to build a new group, Westlife.  McFadden and Byrne were recruited to complete the ensemble.

In 1998, Westlife opened for Boyzone and Backstreet Boys in Dublin.  Smash Hits Magazine awarded them the Best New Act Tour Award later that year.  In 1999, the band released a series of singles, Swear It Again, If I Let You Go, and Flying Without Wings, all of which raced to #1 on the Ireland and UK charts.  Their debut album, Westlife, was released later. Their subsequent singles, I Have A Dream/Seasons in the Sun and Fool Again, gave them five consecutive  #1 hits.

Stardom

Westlife's debut album certified 4x platinum in the UK and double platinum in Europe.  Their second album, Coast to Coast, released two more singles, Phil Collins' Against All Odds (with Mariah Carey) and My Love, made them the first band in the UK to have seven consecutive #1 singles.  The album peaked at #1 on the UK charts and certified 6x platinum in the UK and double platinum in Europe.  After their third album, World of Our Own, was released in 2001, Westlake embarked on a world tour.

Four more albums were released between 2001 and 2009, plus a greatest hits album in 2002 and two cover albums, Allow Us to be Frank, a tribute to the ratpack, and The Love Album, covering love ballads from such artists as Bette Midler and Garth Brooks.  Every album released certified at least platinum.  

Here and Now

In 2008, Westlife embarked on a sold-out tour to mark the band's tenth anniversary.  HarperCollins UK, to honor the band's ten years of success, released their autobiography, Westlife – Our Story.  They will be going on tour again in mid-2010 to promote their 2009 album, Where We Are Now.

According to official statistics, Westlife is the second highest selling artist of all time and the highest selling artist of the decade in the UK.  They have sold 10.4 million albums.  Since 1998, Westlife has received over fifty awards for their albums, singles, performances, and even their website.  While they have never been able to make a name for themselves in the US, they have achieved superstar status in the UK.

Did you know . . .

1. In 2004, Flying Without Wings was named Favorite Download by Smash Hits, based on mp3 sales.

2. Swear It Again was released in the US in 2000, and reached #20 on the Billboard Hot 100.

3. American Idol winner Ruben Stoddard performed Flying Without Wings during his competition season.

• Unlimited Music Access
• Music File Sharing
• Country Based Radio Channels
• Easy, Fast and Safe!
• 100% Free!