Chris Toh shoots the breeze with "the cute one" Stephen Gately.
Did you think you were gonna be this big?
"We hoped that it would be this big and we wanted to be this big. So we worked really hard over the last three years and luckly we've done very ewll and things have been really good for us."
What's been the biggest change for you?
"Being in the band is the biggest change in my life. When you're in the band, everything around you changes. Your life completely changes. You do things that a normal 20 year-old wouldn't get to do. You get to meet people, you get to sing on stage, you get to write songs. Your lifestyle changes completely."
Is that the reason calling the album A Different Beat?
"Yep, have you heard it? On this album we wanted to do a lot more and we wrote a lot of the songs and we co-producted some of the songs as well. We used different producers - that was really special - we're very happy with the album. It's very different. We wanted to go for a different look. It's still Boyzone though. The minute you turn it on you'll hear us and know immediately that it's Boyzone."
What's the most difficult thing about being in Boyzone?
"Getting up early in the morning! eah, when you're working really late at night, like last night i got off stage at quarter to 11 and got back to the hotel, but you're so hyped up with everything that's going around you. So you can't sleep till one in the morning and you get up like half past six, seven o'clock!(laughs) Other than that, everything's fine!"
What are the highlights in the past year?
"Two number one singles, a number one album and we'd done the MTV awards which went out to one billionn people - that was a big highlight for us. We've many highlights this year. It's been a good year for us. How is Singapore?"
It's been wet these past few days.
"Is it? I'm really looking forward to coming back to Singapore. We all are. We think it's an absolutely beautiful place. I loved it. I think it's brilliant. The people - the girls are really friendly - and the shopping is great. It's really clean. I really enjoyed it."
What do you think of the fans here?
"The fans in Singapore are quite polite. They don't drag on yer, they don't tear yer clothes off. They're nice."
You mean other fans tear your clothes off?
"Yes! Sometimes when you're coming out of the building, they tend to tear your clothes. That's fun(haha)!"
Do you guys argue a lot? "We're fine guys who hang around each other, see each other 24 hours a day, seven days a week, so there are bound to be arguments but no fist fights or anything like that. We have disagreements but we sort them out at the end of the day. There's no point in carrying an argument within the group".
What did fans think about Keith and Mikey being dads?
"They've been great and really supportive. They got lots of presents for the babies. They don't mind at all, they're really happy for the guys."
Do you get pressured to be a dad as well?
"No, no preassure on me. Not at the moment. Maybe in 10 years time. I'm still young, i've got a lot of things i wanna do before i settle down. I wanna do tons of things. I wanna go around the world again and enjoy myself. I just wanna have a good time. I wanna meet lots of people. I wanna try new things."
Who chose 'Ben'?
"I did! I'm a fan of Michael Jackson. I think he's a great artiste, i have a lot of respect for him. And even though he's been through a lot of hassle and stuff, every song he's released does very well for him. I thought('Ben') was very good song. It's been played since when i was growing up as a child. And it's a big challlenge for me as well, because it's such a difficult song to sing."
What about 'Words'? "We were going to release 'A Different beat' as the first single, but we went back into the studio and 'Words' was one of the songs and we said let's release this. It's got great lyrics and Ronan does a good job singing it. And people know it. It's done very well for us. Yes, the Bee Gees heard it and they ran us up and congratulated us. They think it's really good. They rang the TV show up while we were on the TV and said congratulations."
Are you worried about being labelled a boy band?
"That's what we are, we're a boy band - five boys in a group. That's not something we hide and try to say we're not because that's what we are. We are different to a lot of boy bands. We've gained a lot of respect in the business. They can see that we write, we co-produce and they give us respect, which is qute good for us."
What's for the future?
"We're coming back to the Far East this year and hopefully Singapore. We wanna come out and do more stuff there. Then to America and a European tour too. After that, who knows?"
That's a lot of touring! Who do you share rooms with?
"I get my own room! I alwasy get me own room. I like my privacy, you know, do what i want in my own room and just chill out."
What do you normally do?
"I like to have a nice bath, put a bathrobe on and lie down and watch some TV and other room service. I'm not a party animal."
So what's your New year resolution?
"To make sure i'm a lot happier and to be happy in everything i do and for all the people around me to make sure that they're happy and just l ive life and - be happy!"