Ronan Keating: It would be harder for Boyzone to survive if we were starting now

Ronan Keating has said it would have been harder for Boyzone to get their big break if they were making music now.

The Irish band, created by Louis Walsh in 1993, rocketed to fame with hits such as No Matter What, Words, So Good, Coming Home Now and Father And Son.

It made stars of Keating, Keith Duffy, Stephen Gately, Mikey Graham and Shane Lynch, but Keating said the band would not have been as successful if they were setting out today.

He told ITV’s Good Morning Britain: “There’s so much great talent out there, and because of social media there’s so much exposure.

“So it’s hard to be heard and to be seen, to be honest.

“I know that sounds crazy, but because there’s so much it’s hard to separate the good from the bad sometimes.

“And I’m not saying that we’re better than others, but it’s just there’s so much good stuff coming through all the time.

“I think it would have been harder for a band like Boyzone to survive in this kind of climate.

“I look at the success of One Direction and what they did on a global scale and how good they were and how good their music was.

“It’s just different, I guess, and I think it’s would have been harder.”

Gately died in 2009 at the age of 33, shortly after the band staged a comeback.

They continued as a four-piece and in 2018 they celebrated their 25th anniversary with their last tour and album.

Keating recently announced he will step down from hosting the Magic Radio breakfast show after seven years so he can focus on “reconnecting” with his music.

The singer, who presents the show with Harriet Scott, will leave at the end of July.

He said: “I have missed the school runs. I would love to be there in the mornings.

“I was never a morning person, before I did Magic it was the total opposite for me.

“So I think my body clock has changed dramatically now so I think I’ll enjoy the school runs.”