Westlife are on track for another number one album following their performance on Britain's Got Talent. The band, consisting of Kian Egan, Shane Filan and Nicky Byrne, reunited with former mentor Simon Cowell on the ITV semi-final, performing a medley of hits including Swear It Again, Flying Without Wings, World Of Our Own and Uptown Girl.
Their new compilation, Westlife 25: The Ultimate Collection, released on Friday to mark the group's 25th anniversary, is currently outselling the rest of the top 75 combined, according to latest chart figures. A source close to ITV said: “The band came off stage absolutely buzzing and it felt like a real celebration of everything they’ve achieved.”
Shane Filan, 46, told the Mirror: “BGT will be the first time we’ve seen Simon in a few years. He was such a huge part of all those songs, all those ballads. He was the one who wanted us to be different.” Cowell gave the band their first record contract in 1998 and guided them to seven consecutive number one singles, a feat not even The Beatles matched.
Nicky Byrne recalled: “There was a part of us that wanted this so badly. I remember a conversation with Simon at RCA records where we said, ‘We want this. We don’t want any days off,’ and he laughed and winked at us and said, ‘I’ll hold you to that.’” Kian admitted initial worries about releasing so many love songs, but now recognises that “this is the music that stands the test of time”.
This week, Westlife added more dates to their world tour, which will take them to America, New Zealand and Australia after kicking off in Dublin. Final tickets for the UK leg of the Westlife 25: The Anniversary World Tour are on sale now at LiveNation.co.uk.
