Shane Filan admits that he still gets a lot of requests to perform the hits of Westlife even though his former boy band broke up six years ago.
“I always get asked to sing Westlife songs, and I still love singing them. I always like to sing what the fans enjoy. I think I get asked to sing ‘My Love’ and ‘Flying Without Wings’ the most,” the 38-year-old Irish singer told InterAksyon in a recent interview.
As a matter of fact, Shane, who was in the country over the weekend, indulged Manila and Cebu fans at Robinsons malls with Westlife favorites. He even performed “Fool Again” on the Sunday noontime show “ASAP” along with his latest single, “Unbreakable.”
“Unbreakable” is part of his latest album, “Love Always,” released by MCA Music. Shane said the album, released in August of last year, is very personal to him as it features his interpretation of his all-time favorite love songs like “This I Promise You” by NSYNC, “Make You Feel My Love” by Bob Dylan, “Don’t Dream It’s Over” by Crowded House, “Heaven” by Bryan Adams, “I Can’y Make You Love Me” by Bonnie Raitt, and “Eternal Flame” by The Bangles.
“I chose these songs as they are songs I have loved for a long time and ones that I love singing. I had so many songs to choose from it was hard to narrow it down,” he noted.
Aside from the covers, there are also three new songs in “Love Always” that Shane co-wrote including “Completely” which he says has become a fan favorite in his recent live shows.
“I wrote these new songs because I wanted to give my fans something that was personal to me. ‘Completely’ in particular means so much to me. I enjoy writing and I’m going to do more of it in my coming albums,” he shared.
As for his thoughts about returning to the Philippines where Westlife performed a sellout concert at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in 2011 and where he also headlined his equally well-received solo concert at the World Trade Center in 2014, Shane said the country is one part of the world he always feels very much at home in.
“I always get such a warm welcome from the fans. I always remember landing at the Ninoy Aquino international airport and I always see hundreds of fans who always welcome me there. It always makes me so happy to be here,” Shane quipped.
