Latest Westlife News

note: thanks to the following websites for providing some of the news items found on this site - Worldpop | MTVasia | dotMusic | The Sun | BBC | WENN | Agnes =)

If you want to share your positive concert experiences, feel free to send it to us at westlife@previewstock.com and we will post it on this site and share it with other Westlife fans. Please include the date/concert venue that you attended. Also send any Westlife news we might have missed to that address above!

The Westlife news archives can be found at the bottom of the page

Westlife in Sao Paulo, Brazil
Westlife in Mexico!

3/08/02

Westlife slims down for the United States

Westlife have hired Shaggy's manager, Robert Livingston, to help them get back in shape and to lose wait. Livingston will handle them when they are in the US and will be placing the group on a strict health regime and fitness program. He said, "They need to lose weight. They need a change of diet and a proper fitness programme. I think they're fantastic, but they need a lot of work if they're going to make it in America. They are already successful but I can make them massive. They've got great voices, but they need to be edgier and get some new material. I need to give them some street-cred."

More practical jokes

Westlife have confessed to more tricks that they play on each other. It seems to be a competition to see who can be humiliated the most. Nicky said, "Once, Mark fell asleep in an airport and we drew a red nose on him and tears down one side of his face. And another time we drew creases on Shane's head and wrote 'Fred' across Mark's forehead - we call him Freddies - when they were kipping down. When we woke Shane looked at Mark and then at us and we told him not to say anything. Then Mark woke up, he looked at Shane and did the same thing, so they were both sitting there laughing at each other. They only realised about half an hour later!"

Shane to move in with Gillian

Rumor has it that Shane wil be moving in with his girlfriend Gillian. Shane is currently looking for ahome in his native County Sligo. A friend said, "Now she has nearly finished her A'Levels, Gillian is ready to move out of home and he's really keen to get somewhere. Shane's mum and dad love Gillian and so it's all go."

Kerry is voted the perfect mom.

Kerry Katona beat off several rivals (including Victoria Beckham) to be crowned Celebrity Mum of the Year. Others she pipped to the award included Davina McCall, Cherie Blair, Ulrika Jonsson and Kate Winslet. Also in the top ten were Fiona Phillips, Zoe Ball, Patsy Palmer and Tania Bryer.

Kerry got more than twice as many votes as Posh Spice in the online poll, organized by The Blue Foot Bear Company. Davina McCall was second and Victoria Beckham third. Kerry will be donating 50 of the company's teddy bears to the NSPCC.

Westlife and U2 win at the Meteor Irish Music Awards

Westlife won 3 awards and U2 scored 7 awards earlier this week at the Irish Music Awards held at the Point Theater in Dublin. Among the music stars in attendance last night included Westlife, U2, Gabrielle, The Lighthouse Family, Sinead O'Connor, The Cranberries and The Corrs.

One of the main stars of the night was Enrique Iglesias, who paid a flying visit as he was off to Monaco for the World Music Awards straight after his performance.

Jumping off the stage to be closer to the fans, Enrique realised halfway through his performance that he would have hassle getting back on the stage. He said, "When I got off the stage I didn't realise it was so high, so I had to wait till the song was over to jump back up, I didn't want to make a fool of myself."

U2 won 7 of their 10 nominations while Westlife won 3 of their 6 nominations.

Best Irish Pop Album: Westlife - World Of Our Own
Best Irish Pop Single: Westlife - Uptown Girl,
Best Irish Pop Act: Westlife

For best Irish Pop Album, they were up against The Corrs, Ronan Keating and Samantha Mumba.

Westlife were stuck in a lift for 20 minutes before appearing at an after show press conference. Kian said at the conference, "We are sitting here with 3 awards that we never expected to get. We are very happy with where we are and where Westlife are".

The ShowBiz Ireland after show party

The after show party was held in trendy Cafe En Seine, and as expected, was mobbed by hundreds of waiting fans.

Stars attending included Sinead O'Connor,Westlife, Jim Sheridan, Bellefire, SIX, Patrick Bergin, Keith Duffy and Stephen Gately as well as over 300 VIP guests. Refreshments for the night were provided by Stella beer.

Will Young takes UK #1 with a record smash hit

Pop Idol winner Will Young has made UK chart history by selling the most singles ever in its first week of release. The double A-sided single Evergreen/Anything Is Possible sold 1,108,269 copies. This beat the previous record set by Band Aid's "Do They Know It's Christmas" in 1984, which sold 750,000 copies and Elton John's tribute to Princess Diana, Candle In The Wind in 1997 which sold 658,000 copies in its first week. The song is also attracting the most airplay in the UK. As it stands right now, "Evergreen" is already the 58th best-selling U.K single of all time.

It also looks like Will (will) take the #1 spot for a second week in a row as he has sold an additional 207,075 copies so far.

Speaking to Radio 1's Mark Goodier, Will said, "For once, I'm speechless. I just don't know what to say. I'm just so happy. I suppose I should thank Westlife for giving me the song. Their version was absolutely briliant."

So, the question is, should we call "Evergreen" Westlife's unofficial 11th #1? =) Westlife's "World of Our Own" fell to #6 from #1 last week.

3/02/02

Westlife in "New York Times" blurb...
Europeans own copyprotected Westlife CD

This is just as I had suspected on the message board when Dutch fans reported that they couldn't play their Westlife CDs in their computer last fall. For those who don't know, the New York Times is the major newspaper of New York City and is the de facto national paper of the United States (meaning it is sold throughout the United States and widely respected).

"...That may be why the labels are not divulging much about their activities. A spokesman for BMG would say only that the company had so far released "a handful" of copy-protected titles in Europe, but he did confirm that one of them was "World of Our Own" by Westlife, an Irish band. Athena Espiritu-Santo, 28, who bought the CD at a store in San Francisco as an import, had already figured that out.

When the CD would not play in the CD-ROM drives of her computers, either at work or at home, where she usually listens to music, friends told her that it was probably copy-protected. Still, she does not want to return it.

"That would mean I wouldn't have my Westlife CD," said Ms. Espiritu- Santo, a legal assistant, "and they're kind of hard to find here." So she just listens to the CD in her car."

And that's just more proof for Westlife that us American fans are still waiting for them to crack this market.

So Solid Crew says Westlife incident is forgotten

So Solid Crew say they aren't holding a grudge against Westlife following an incident between the two bands at the Brit Awards. The group are reported to have thrown champagne bottles at Westlife's Bryan McFadden after he goaded them on stage. But So Solid member Asher D says the incident has now been forgotten.

He told Radio 1: "At the Brits everyone's had a lot to drink and says a lot of things that they don't mean. We don't hold nothing against Westlife - we just want to keep everything clean cut on the industry scene."

Westlife monthly news archives