Westlife to hold Hanoi concert in June

Irish boy band Westlife. Photo from Westlife Facebook

"Hanoi, Vietnam! We are so excited to announce that we’ll be coming to see you guys on the 4th and 5th of June," read the announcement uploaded on Thursday on the band’s official Facebook page.

Tickets for the shows will be available for sale starting May 13.

Only three out of four members of the band—Kian Egan, Nicky Byrne, and Shane Filan—will perform this time, as Mark Feehily will be absent due to health reasons and has not toured with the group since the end of February.

With the English pop group 911 joining as guest performers, the Hanoi concerts will mark the starting point for "The Hits Tour." After performing in Hanoi, the band will head to Malaysia, where they’ll perform on June 9.

Westlife last performed in Vietnam on Nov. 21-22 last year, at Ho Chi Minh City’s Thong Nhat Stadium, as part of their "The Wild Dreams Tour." Tickets for their Ho Chi Minh City concerts ranged from VND850,000 to VND4 million (US$33-$157).

Although their performance delighted the audience, the show received criticism regarding its organization, prompting the organizers to issue an apology.

Some attendees of the Nov. 21 show sought refunds due to obstructed views caused by stage props.

Meanwhile, concert-goers at the Nov. 22 show noted that the logo of an unauthorized cryptocurrency trading platform was prominently displayed on various items at the event, including banners inside and outside the venue, as well as on fans and glow sticks distributed to attendees.

Vietnam’s current laws do not recognize Bitcoin and other virtual currencies as legal means of payment.

A representative of the organizers then clarified in a media interaction that the items bearing the controversial logo were prepared and distributed by third parties and were not related to the show organizers.

Westlife, formed in 1998 in Dublin with five members, disbanded in 2012 before reuniting in 2018. The current lineup consists of Shane Filan, Mark Feehily, Kian Egan, and Nicky Byrne.

The band holds four Guinness World Records, including being the top-selling group of the 21st century in the U.K.