Boyzone was formed in 1993 by former manager
Louis Walsh who advertised an audition for boys to form a vocal group. About 300 auditionees tried it out and six was the initial number of the group. They made their first appearance (only a day after being formed) on Ireland's top-rated
Late Late Show dancing to a backing track.
The band played through 1993 and in the early parts of 1994 all over Ireland. They played in Pubs when Polygram signed them up and released the cover version of the
Detroit Spinners hit "Working My Way Back To You", featuring Mikey Graham and Stephen Gately on lead vocals. It reached No. 3 in the Irish Charts.
The Osmonds hit
Love me for a Reason paved the way for them to break the British Charts. It hit No. 2 in Britain and has started the string of hits for the Irish Boyz. Love me for a reason was included in their
1995 hit debut album "Said and Done." The album reached the No. 1 spot in both UK and Ireland.
The band's second album, "A Different Beat" released in
1996, which contained their first UK number one single, "Words." The album also contained the hit singles
A Different Beat, Isn't it a Wonder and
Picture of You, the OST of
Mr. Bean, The Ultimate Disaster Movie. Ronan Keating won the
Ivor Novello award for songwriting in 1997 for Picture of you.
Their third studio album
Where We Belong, released in 1998 showcased the boyz' writing abilities. The album further widened their fan base due to the more matured songs. It contained the hit singles "All that I Need" (which stayed for 6 weeks in the MTV Asia charts), "Baby Can I Hold You", and "No Matter What". No Matter What was their Best Selling Single and was voted Song of the Year.
Boyzone has been commemorated by the London's Rock Circus by inviting them to place their handprints on the "Walls of Hands" beside the likes of Eric Clapton and Michael Jackson. Also, Wax figures of the boyz were made beside U2 in Dublin.
Boyzone have been active supporters of Charity works. They appeared on the Childliners record
The Gift Of Christmas alongside acts such as
Backstreet Boys, MN8, E.Y.C., Sean Maguire, Deuce, Ultimate Kaos, Let Loose, East 17, Peter Andre, Michelle Gayle, Dannii Minogue and many more.
In
1999, their greatest hits compilation "By Request" was released and was followed by another tour. Also, during this time, due to the threat of a tabloid expose, Stephen Gately confessed that he was gay and was in love with the ex-Caught in the Act member boyfriend Eloy de Jong. It was also during this year when Ronan Keating released his first solo single,
When You Say nothing at all. They have all decided to take some time off the band to pursue solo projects.
The group performed together for the last time in
January 2000. In the seven years that they were together (1993 - 2000), Boyzone proved worthy of accolades given them. Having been dubbed the "most promising band of the year" by the British magazine Smash Hits in 1995, the group more than fulfilled the modest expectations that followed their Late, Late Show performance. Despite having children and marrying while being in the band, the group was able to gain the respect of fans not for their fancy faces but for their music and great concert shows. All sixteen of their singles reached the top five and they became the first Irish act to have four number one hits in the United Kingdom. Their 1998 tour of Ireland shattered all sales records when 35,000 tickets were sold out in four hours.
