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Courtesy Universal Music

He first tasted big-time success with Irish boyband, Boyzone. His subtly raspy voice drove tracks like “Baby, Can I Hold You Tonight?” and “Words” up the charts. Then, he found enormous chart success as a solo act. In December ‘06, seven years after touring the country as part of Boyzone, Ronan Keating returned to India to perform for his fans in the sub-continent. In an exclusive for eMusicPost, Ronan spoke of life with Boyzone,

eMusicPost: Let us start at the start. You found stardom with Boyzone at just 16 years of age. What was that whole experience for you, being with Boyzone?
Ronan: It was fantastic. It was an incredible learning curve for me, a brand new experience. We just made it all up as we went along. I mean at 16 years of age, we were catapulted into fame. We were travelling on fancy planes, around the world, in the lap of luxury. But we kept our focus and focused on the things that mattered – making good music and making people happy.his solo career and other things.

eMP: That’s brilliant. Now, you had incredible success with Boyzone. Y’all had some 16 top ten singles, all of your albums were #1 on the U.K charts. Don’t you sometimes feel like you want to go back to Boyzone? Y’all never officially broke up…
Ronan: Yes, we never broke up. But, hopefully, people will understand that it’s been long enough and that the band ended there. I don’t really see us getting back together now. I think it’s because of the Take That thing. They are back together and stuff, so people think Boyzone should come back too. But no, I don’t see it happening.

eMP: In 2000, you released your first solo album, Ronan and it had some incredible hits. Coming out of something like Boyzone, were you apprehensive about that, about your solo career?
Ronan: I was very nervous. I could have stayed with Boyzone and stuck with a winning formula there. But life, for me, is about taking risks and facing challenges. So that’s what I did. Fortunately it worked. We picked good songs. The album was a massive hit for me.

Mihir: Then came your second album, Destination, in 2002. How did you change your approach towards your second album?
Ronan: Well, my focus with Destination was just to make the people happy that I’d already made happy. I wanted to make great music, and try and have continuity between the first and the second albums. And I think we did that.

Mihir: Now, the third album you came out with, Turn It On; it seemed like a much more intimate album…
Ronan: For me, it was my best piece of work. I loved it. I hope that in time, people see it that way too. There are very special songs on that album. I hope that in time, people go back and listen to those tracks with a new perspective. The new album I’m working on, that I’m currently recording, it’s definitely the best work I’ve ever been involved in. But it’s not that different. It’s back to the old school ballads, up-tempo songs. There’s so much energy in these tracks, its fantastic. I think it’s going to be great.

Mihir: Now, March is a very special month for you, isn’t it?
Ronan: Yes, it is. My birthday is on the 3rd of March, my son Jack was born on the 15th. The new single is coming out on the 6th of March and the new album will come out a couple of weeks later, in early April.

Mihir: Before your new album, you also released a Best of collection called Ten Years of Hits. Do you think it’s a little premature? Why so early?
Ronan: You see, what it was is it was a collaboration of the Boyzone tracks and my solo career. That’s why it’s called Ten Years of Hits. There were Boyzone tracks on there and they were my favourite tracks – “Baby, Can I Hold You Tonight?”, “Father and Son” and “Words”. I rerecorded them. They were changing points in my life and that’s why we recorded them. It was a full-on album with fourteen tracks. It was a great album and it gave me space to work on my new album.

Mihir: Now, most of your biggest hits with Boyzone were covers. But I’ve heard your original tracks, the songs you’ve written and they’re incredible. So why go for covers when you write such beautiful songs?
Ronan: Well, thank you very much. I do continue to write songs. In fact, on my new album, most of the songs are originals. There’s just one cover, I believe. But every once in a while, I find a song that I love, which I want to try and make my own

Mihir: A lot of your covers are also country tracks. Are you a big country music fan as well?
Ronan: Well, I do spend a lot of time in Nashville. There’s a bond between pop music and country music. There’s even an intimate connection between Ireland and country music. It sounds funny, but there are a lot of big country acts in Ireland as well. I love country music. It’s the ballads I love though; not the up-tempo honky-tonk and line dancing. The ballads are just gorgeous, so full of emotions.

Mihir: Now, you’ve even recorded a track, “Friends and Lovers”, with the Bee Gees, haven’t you? And it’s only going to be released on their album?
Ronan: Yes, I have. What happened was that I wrote it with Barry, Maurice and Robin about five years ago. And when you hear it you’ll understand why I never put it on a record. It’s just so different from anything I’ve ever recorded. It’s a beautiful song. I’ve sung it and the brothers sung on the back and played guitars. It’s just an honour for me to work with them. I wanted that song to have a life and now it finally has a life on this album, a Bee Gees album called Love Songs. It’s fantastic.

Mihir: Speaking of collaborations, you’ve collaborated with some incredible artists. But is there anybody special that you want to collaborate with in the future?
Ronan: Well, Jamie Cullum has played the piano on my new track. He’s a great friend, Jamie. It’s a pleasure working with him. But there are a couple of other people, like Bono, that I’d love to work with. Of course, everyone wishes they could work with Elvis…

Mihir: Any plans on touring Mumbai soon?
Ronan: Yes. I’ll be back sometime in the summer of 2006 and do a couple of shows around.

Mihir: So, any parting message for your fans out here?
Ronan: Well, I just need to thank them for the support. Sorry that it took seven years to get back. I’ll see y’all again next year…

-Mihir

	Ronan Keating Exclusive Home Ronan talks about his music and more...


	Courtesy Universal Music He first tasted big-time success with Irish boyband, Boyzone. His subtly raspy voice drove tracks like “Baby, Can I Hold You Tonight?” and “Words” up the charts. Then, he found enormous chart success as a solo act. In December ‘06, seven years after touring the country as part of Boyzone, Ronan Keating returned to India to perform for his fans in the sub-continent. In an exclusive for eMusicPost, Ronan spoke of life with Boyzone, eMusicPost: Let us start at the start. You found stardom with Boyzone at just 16 years of age. What was that whole experience for you, being with Boyzone? Ronan: It was fantastic. It was an incredible learning curve for me, a brand new experience. We just made it all up as we went along. I mean at 16 years of age, we were catapulted into fame. We were travelling on fancy planes, around the world, in the lap of luxury. But we kept our focus and focused on the things that mattered – making good music and making people happy.his solo career and other things. eMP: That’s brilliant. Now, you had incredible success with Boyzone. Y’all had some 16 top ten singles, all of your albums were #1 on the U.K charts. Don’t you sometimes feel like you want to go back to Boyzone? Y’all never officially broke up… Ronan: Yes, we never broke up. But, hopefully, people will understand that it’s been long enough and that the band ended there. I don’t really see us getting back together now. I think it’s because of the Take That thing. They are back together and stuff, so people think Boyzone should come back too. But no, I don’t see it happening. eMP: In 2000, you released your first solo album, Ronan and it had some incredible hits. Coming out of something like Boyzone, were you apprehensive about that, about your solo career? Ronan: I was very nervous. I could have stayed with Boyzone and stuck with a winning formula there. But life, for me, is about taking risks and facing challenges. So that’s what I did. Fortunately it worked. We picked good songs. The album was a massive hit for me. Mihir: Then came your second album, Destination, in 2002. How did you change your approach towards your second album? Ronan: Well, my focus with Destination was just to make the people happy that I’d already made happy. I wanted to make great music, and try and have continuity between the first and the second albums. And I think we did that. Mihir: Now, the third album you came out with, Turn It On; it seemed like a much more intimate album… Ronan: For me, it was my best piece of work. I loved it. I hope that in time, people see it that way too. There are very special songs on that album. I hope that in time, people go back and listen to those tracks with a new perspective. The new album I’m working on, that I’m currently recording, it’s definitely the best work I’ve ever been involved in. But it’s not that different. It’s back to the old school ballads, up-tempo songs. There’s so much energy in these tracks, its fantastic. I think it’s going to be great. Mihir: Now, March is a very special month for you, isn’t it? Ronan: Yes, it is. My birthday is on the 3rd of March, my son Jack was born on the 15th. The new single is coming out on the 6th of March and the new album will come out a couple of weeks later, in early April. Mihir: Before your new album, you also released a Best of collection called Ten Years of Hits. Do you think it’s a little premature? Why so early? Ronan: You see, what it was is it was a collaboration of the Boyzone tracks and my solo career. That’s why it’s called Ten Years of Hits. There were Boyzone tracks on there and they were my favourite tracks – “Baby, Can I Hold You Tonight?”, “Father and Son” and “Words”. I rerecorded them. They were changing points in my life and that’s why we recorded them. It was a full-on album with fourteen tracks. It was a great album and it gave me space to work on my new album. Mihir: Now, most of your biggest hits with Boyzone were covers. But I’ve heard your original tracks, the songs you’ve written and they’re incredible. So why go for covers when you write such beautiful songs? Ronan: Well, thank you very much. I do continue to write songs. In fact, on my new album, most of the songs are originals. There’s just one cover, I believe. But every once in a while, I find a song that I love, which I want to try and make my own Mihir: A lot of your covers are also country tracks. Are you a big country music fan as well? Ronan: Well, I do spend a lot of time in Nashville. There’s a bond between pop music and country music. There’s even an intimate connection between Ireland and country music. It sounds funny, but there are a lot of big country acts in Ireland as well. I love country music. It’s the ballads I love though; not the up-tempo honky-tonk and line dancing. The ballads are just gorgeous, so full of emotions. Mihir: Now, you’ve even recorded a track, “Friends and Lovers”, with the Bee Gees, haven’t you? And it’s only going to be released on their album? Ronan: Yes, I have. What happened was that I wrote it with Barry, Maurice and Robin about five years ago. And when you hear it you’ll understand why I never put it on a record. It’s just so different from anything I’ve ever recorded. It’s a beautiful song. I’ve sung it and the brothers sung on the back and played guitars. It’s just an honour for me to work with them. I wanted that song to have a life and now it finally has a life on this album, a Bee Gees album called Love Songs. It’s fantastic. Mihir: Speaking of collaborations, you’ve collaborated with some incredible artists. But is there anybody special that you want to collaborate with in the future? Ronan: Well, Jamie Cullum has played the piano on my new track. He’s a great friend, Jamie. It’s a pleasure working with him. But there are a couple of other people, like Bono, that I’d love to work with. Of course, everyone wishes they could work with Elvis… Mihir: Any plans on touring Mumbai soon? Ronan: Yes. I’ll be back sometime in the summer of 2006 and do a couple of shows around. Mihir: So, any parting message for your fans out here? Ronan: Well, I just need to thank them for the support. Sorry that it took seven years to get back. I’ll see y’all again next year… -Mihir Back to the Top

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