Westlife release single in Mandarin for huge Chinese fanbase – but there’s a catch

Westlife have released a song in Mandarin. Yes, you read that right.

The Flying Without Wings boy band have drafted in AI in a bid to make it in China, and they have worked on a cover of Chinese singer Jason Zhang’s 2016 hit Love + Courage using teaching software Kugou AIK.

They said in a statement; ‘The fan response from us singing The Ordinary Road in Mandarin was truly overwhelming and this just felt like it could be another fun thing to do for our Chinese fans.’

In December 2021, the band held a virtual concert through Chinese social media platform WeChat, which attracted 27.9 million viewers.

During the livestream, the band performed The Ordinary Road by singer-songwriter Pu Shu, and the performance was viewed over 72million times over the course of three days.

‘It took months to get it right as we wanted it to be the perfect reflection of our voices and we are thrilled with the final version,’ the statement continued on the new release.

‘It’s hugely exciting. We are delighted it is one of Jason Zhang’s songs as we performed with him on a previous tour. We hope our Chinese fans love it!’

The band – made up of Nicky Byrne, Kian Egan, Mark Feehily and Shane Filan – didn’t actually sing on the track, which was created using the world’s first multilingual AI singing technology to sound like them.

However, they were still heavily involved in the creative process, which resulted in the song being streamed more than a million times in its first week.

Tencent Music Entertainment added: ‘Since the release of their album Wild Dreams in 2021, Westlife have continued to deepen their connection with China and Tencent Music Entertainment.

‘In 2022, Westlife took their love for their Chinese fans to new heights by deeply participating in Tencent Music Entertainment Group’s annual non-profit programme If Music Has a Shape, demonstrating their love for their Chinese fans through the campaign.

‘This ongoing mutual dedication is why we have chosen Westlife as the first international artist to collaborate with to release AI music.

‘We hope to use AI technology to bring Westlife a bit closer to their fans in China.