Keith Duffy has said the Ronan Keating once vetoed a massive tour for Boyzone.
Duffy, who was part of the boyband along with Keating, Mikey Graham, Shane Lynch and the late Stephen Gately, says he would to play more shows with his "brothers", but Keating claimed it would not be "healthy" as he combined work with family life.
Next month, Keith Duffy, Ronan Keating, Mikey Graham and Shane Lynch will perform live at Arsenal's Emirates Stadium in London on June 5 and 6, which will mark their first live shows since their five night run at London's Palladium.
“Our historical promoters and agents offered us big 40-date tours, which I was more than happy to step up and do, but it wasn’t me, I wasn’t in control, I wasn’t the decision maker", Keith Duffy told The Sun.
He continued: “Everybody has to agree to doing a tour like that, it takes a lot of time and effort and everybody needs to be dedicated to it and I was 100 per cent prepared to do a Boyzone tour".
“I thought that’s what the right thing was to do but Ronan didn’t want to do it, Ronan wanted to just do a couple of stadium shows and leave it there", he added. “So, listen, I understand he’s got his own career, we’re not together, he’s got an awful lot going on, he’s doing The Voice Australia, The Voice Germany, he’s living between Dubai and Australia, so it’s just not right for him at this time in his life".
Elsewhere, Keith Duffy is currently working as part of a duo, Boyzlife with former Westlife singer, Brian McFadden.
Speaking about this, Duffy said he loves working and having a say in what they do.
“I’m a co-manager of the brand and we decide what we do, where we go, how long we go for, what we record, we write together, we record together and I just have a great understanding of what we’re trying to achieve", he said.
“With Boyzone, I never had any control at all, I never had any control of us breaking up, staying together, taking a break, going into the studio, I wasn’t in control of anything in Boyzone and that really upset me and frustrated me at the end, so that’s why the Boyzlife thing gives me so much satisfaction and still with Boyzone, I don’t have any control".
Duffy also credited these Boyzlife shows with making him feel that bit more "confident" when it comes to performing at stadium shows.
“I’m ready to go. It’s been a long time since I’ve performed with Boyzone, I think the last time was 2019", he said. “So I’m really excited about getting back on stage with the boys. It’s going to be very exciting but I’m just glad that I’m as busy as I am with Boyzlife because it just makes me feel more confident about the jump on stage in front of 60,000 people or however many there is".
Keith Duffy also went on to claim that some Boyzone members were "put down and insulted" and told to stand at the back of the stage while others worked on the main vocals.
“Boyzone, historically, were always known as the voice of Ronan Keating and Stephen Gately. It was always a split vocal between the two lads and when we lost Stephen, you know, Ronan kind of took a lot of those vocals on", he said. “I think maybe at the time possibly, you know, somebody else should have maybe kind of lifted the load a little bit with Ronan, but we’d never been encouraged, we’d never been backed, we’d never been pushed to the front, you know, if anything we were put down and insulted".
“Your confidence dies when you’re being constantly put down and put to the back and when you’re standing on stage in front of 10,000, 20,000, 50,000 people you don’t want to be self-conscious, you want to be very, very confident and positive and secure in your situation and that’s where I am now".
The former Coronation Street actor said he wants to take the "pressure off" Ronan Keating this time around.
“So, now it’s time for me to step up, you know, stand centre stage to take some of the pressure off Ronan and get up and do what I’m now confident to do", he said.
