A fangirl’s full-circle moment with Westlife
LET ME TAKE YOU BACK to a very specific memory.
It was sometime in the early 2000s. I was in Grade 5, absolutely unhinged, singing But If I Let You Go at the top of my lungs like my life depended on it.
My classmates and I had committed the crime of cutting out every single Westlife photo from every magazine we could get our hands on, and I — with zero shame — had Mark Feehily’s face taped inside my notebook, running after my classmate with a walis in my hand because she told me that there was a rumor that he was dating Mandy Moore at the time. Haha! I was that girl. Fully, completely, embarrassingly that girl.
Recently, on a Sunday afternoon here in the Philippines, and thanks to the magic of the Internet, I was looking across my screen, seeing Shane Filan, Nick Byrne and Kian Egan — three-fourths of the legendary Irish boy band that basically soundtracked my entire fifth and sixth grade — doing what I do for a living: interviewing them — for real, on camera and as a journalist. If that was not a full circle moment, I genuinely did not know what was.
Here’s the thing about Westlife: they have been to the Philippines more times than most of us can count. And somehow, through all those visits, all those sold-out concerts, all those years, I never got the chance to sit down with them. So, when this interview finally happened, my smile was never-ending and I felt grateful.
But beyond my own personal kilig, what struck me most about the conversation was something bigger — something that speaks to where (Original Pilipino Music) OPM and the global music scene are right now. We were talking about their upcoming 25th anniversary concert on Jan. 20, 2027, at the SM Mall of Asia Arena — already a massive deal on its own — when the subject of Cup of Joe came up. And let me tell you, the energy in the room shifted immediately.
For context: Cup of Joe is arguably the hottest OPM band right now. Their song Multo has crossed all kinds of boundaries, and Kian was clearly getting his phone to become more familiar. The question was floated — what if Westlife and Cup of Joe did something together? Something different after their countless concerts in the country.
Shane didn’t hesitate: “Believe us, we’ll get in touch. We’ll make it happen. We promise.”
And as for Nick? He went full hype man. “It could be our biggest ever hit in the Philippines!”
This is not just lip service from them because we witnessed the genuine shift in how international artists now view the Philippines and more specifically, how they view Filipino music as a legitimate creative partner, not just a fanbase to perform for. The days of foreign acts simply flying in, selling out arenas and flying out are evolving. Artists are now arriving with curiosity, with openness, with a real desire to create something with us — not just for us. And that distinction matters enormously.
Of course, none of this would be possible without the kind of relationship Westlife has built with their Filipino fans over the past 25 years. Shane put it best. “The relationship that we have with our Filipino fans has always been special. We get to meet a lot of Filipino people around the world — at the airport or wherever we may be — and they get a little bit more excited when they see us.”
A little bit more excited. That is an understatement. The story Nick and Shane shared about their American and Canadian tour had me absolutely on board with glee. They went in expecting Irish-American audiences. What did they get instead? A crowd after crowd of Filipinos belting every single lyric back at them.
“One night in Toronto,” Shane recalled, “it was actually all Filipino. And Nick was like, ‘Is anyone here from the Philippines?’— and the crowd went wild.”
Because, of course, it did. Because we show up. We have always shown up. Whether it’s across the Pacific, in Canadian winter or at a Mall of Asia Arena on a humid January night, Filipino fans show up with their whole hearts. We know every word. We bring the energy. Apparently, we also sometimes come in full wedding gowns, which — if you’ve seen videos from past Westlife concerts in Manila — is completely accurate and I respect the commitment. Twenty-five years. That is how long Westlife has been making music, and in many ways, the Philippines has been there for every single chapter.
From Swear It Again in 1999 to whatever magic might come out of a potential Cup of Joe collaboration, Filipino fans have been chart-toppers in their own right, pushing Westlife songs to heights that even their home country might not have predicted.
This concert on Jan. 20 is being framed as a gift that they have been working hard for to bring something fresh and new to the songs we already love. Shane, Nick and Kian spoke about it with a warmth that felt less like a press obligation and more like genuine gratitude. They know what this crowd means. They know what this country has given them. And for those of us ready to claim our piece of that Westlife history, tickets to “Westlife 25: The Anniversary World Tour” are now on sale, and the concert is presented by Wilbros Live.
See you there!
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