It only took a quarter century, but Westlife are finally invading America—on purpose this time. “We didn’t even know it was going to work,” says Shane Filan, still sounding gobsmacked. “We thought we might sell six tickets to Radio City Music Hall. We sold six thousand.”
The Irish vocal powerhouse, long dominant across Europe and Asia, have spent the better part of 25 years making hit records, breaking chart records, and confusing American pop fans who couldn’t quite tell if they were a real band or a CIA psyop involving Simon Cowell, Celine Dion covers, and expertly gelled hair. But now, thanks to social media, international fans, and the fact that nostalgia is apparently a money-printing genre, Westlife is finally on a U.S. tour—timed to St. Patrick’s Day, naturally. Or as they corrected it, Saint Patrick’s Day. “We’re coming to take it back,” Mark Feehily jokes. “You’ve done terrible things to it.”
It turns out that while the group wasn’t touring the U.S., America was quietly discovering Westlife anyway. “We were walking down the street in New York and someone yelled, ‘Oh my god, it’s Westlife!’” Kian Egan recalls. “And it wasn’t an Irish accent. That was an American.”
Even their YouTube stats surprised them—35% of their views come from the U.S. “And now we’re playing the Rose Bowl,” Filan adds, still in disbelief. “Who are these people coming to our shows? We don’t know, but we love them.”
The tour is also the tailwind from their latest album, Wild Dreams, a pop record that somehow manages to sound both retro and reborn. “It’s not nostalgic,” says Nicky Byrne, “but it is about getting back to something. Pure pop. The kind we love. The kind people fell in love with us for.” Despite the fact that it was recorded during lockdown, separated across countries and time zones, the band found creative spark in unlikely places. “It was not a time we’d like to revisit,” Egan admits. “But songs like ‘Alive’ and ‘Lifeline’—those became a lifeline for us too.”
They’re also writing more than ever, often with artists who grew up idolizing them. “The Picture This lads, Stephen from Kodaline, even Ed Sheeran—they all had stories about what our music meant to them,” says Feehily. “Now they’re writing with us. That’s the full circle moment.”
And that signature Westlife sound? It always comes down to the voices. “We can take any song and make it sound like us,” says Filan. “That harmony, that blend, that’s Westlife.”
One song that got a second life was “Magic,” a dance-pop earworm with Billy Joel energy that didn’t make the cut for a previous record. “It was just sitting there,” says Byrne. “Then we realized—it’s great. And now it’s a live favorite.”
As they approach their 25th anniversary, the band is both reflecting and looking ahead. “There are no rules,” Byrne says, quoting their old pal and pop warlock Simon Cowell. “We didn’t really get it then. Now we do. There are no rules—just take the risk, wear the hoodie, drink the coffee.”
And if that sounds suspiciously like a Pinterest quote, well, fair. But it’s working. “We did a festival in Mexico—50,000 people singing every word,” Egan says. “After 19 years of not touring there. That tells you something.”
Westlife sees a kinship in today’s global pop explosion—especially the rise of K-pop. “Five guys on stage singing love songs and making people scream? That’s familiar,” says Feehily. “It’s been Bon Jovi. It’s been The Beatles. Now it’s BTS. It just evolves.”
What hasn’t evolved, and what they refuse to tamper with too much, is their core catalog. “People want the songs the way they remember them,” Filan says. “They got married to those songs. They played them at funerals. They know every note. You don’t mess with that.”
So what’s next after America finally embraces Westlife? More shows. Possibly a new album. And definitely more proof that pure, unabashed pop is forever. “Pop will always be popular,” says Byrne. “That’s why it’s called pop.”
Well said, lads. Now if you could just explain how the hell you sold out Radio City Music Hall in under an hour after ignoring the U.S. for two decades, that’d be great. But honestly? Don’t. Some things are better left as pop magic.
Watch the interview above and then check out the video below.
