Westlife: the ‘90s idol
The Indonesian ‘90s generation knows Westlife so well. The boy band was formed on July 3, 1998, and consisted of five Irish “lads”—Shane Filan, Brian McFadden, Kian Egan, Nicky Byrne, and Mark Feehily.
In April 1999, one of their singles, “Swear It Again,” peaked at number one on the UK Singles Chart. Their debut album, released in November 1999, spawned several UK numberone hit singles, including “I Have a Dream” and “Seasons in the Sun.”
Fans of Westlife were stunned by Brian’s decision to leave the group in 2004. Since his departure, Westlife’s career has continued with the remaining four members. After 14 years together, the group disbanded in 2012 before reuniting in 2018. The four members of the group continue to pursue their individual solo careers and remained active in the singing industry.
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In 2018, Emi Records’ YouTube account uploaded a black-and-white video entitled “Westlife Coming Soon.” The 34-second video begins with the four Westlife members greeting each other and fans by saying, “Hi, We Are Westlife,” and ends with the tagline, “Westlife, New Music, New Tour.”
The video marked Westlife’s comeback to the music world. Since 2018, Westlife has performed at many concerts across the world. In Indonesia, Westlife is scheduled to hold concerts in three cities: ICE BSD Tangerang (2/9/2023), Jakarta Madya Stadium (2/11/2023), and Playlist Festival Bandung (2/12/2023). (yas)