| Ronan Keating: From then until now | Please do not use any part of this biography anywhere else! | |
| A biography by Angela Griffiths |
 | The Boyzone years... Ronan was on the short list with ten other hopefuls whose names included – Shane Lynch, Mikey Graham, Stephen Gately, and Keith Duffy. Louis their manager booked them onto Ireland’s biggest chat show; The Late Late show. The auditions were literally only the day before, so needless to say it was a recipe for disaster. They hardly knew each other and no dance moves had been rehearsed. It was embarrassing for the boys and it’s something that still haunts Ronan today. The critics had a field day; Ronan thought his dream was over before it had even begun. But by perseverance, sheer hard work and determination, the final line up was announced at last: Mikey Graham, Keith Duffy, Shane Lynch, Stephen Gately, and finally Ronan Keating. Boyzone were born.In 1994 Boyzone’s first hit in Ireland was the old Detroit Spinner’s classic |
Working my way back to you with Mikey on lead vocals, and Ronan singing Father and Son on the B side. It went into the chart at no.3, a great start for the band. But the glamorous pop star lifestyle was still a million miles away as they travelled around in an old white transit van doing small gigs to some of the toughest pub/club audiences locally. Very often having to flee the stage from flying debris, but grabbing their fee before they left! But it brought the lads closer together and they soon formed a close friendship. Especially Stephen and Ronan, being the youngest of the group. Ronan still says today that they were some of the best days of his career, and they were starting to reap the benefits of all their hard work. Groups of local girls would follow them to every gig, and soon the lads would recognise faces in the crowd, the press were also starting to take an interest and things were looking good.
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