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Louis Walsh
Name: Louis Walsh
DOB: 5 August 1952
Birth Place: Kiltimagh, County Mayo, Ireland
Claim to fame: Music manager and X Factor presenter
Star Facts
- Louis' real name is Michael Louis Vincent
- He began managing bands at the age of just 15
- Louis has an impressive 28 charting topping number one successes to his name
- Some of the acts managed by Louis over the years include Boyzone, Westlife and Girls Aloud
Biography
Born in County Mayo, Ireland, on 5 August 1952, the undisputed king of Irish pop began his career working in a music manager’s office in Dublin. After witnessing the astounding success of top UK boy band Take That, Louis decided to put together an Irish boy band of his own. Open auditions advertised in newspapers resulted in the Irish pop phenomenon that was Boyzone. The band was a huge success, selling over 12 million albums worldwide.
From here Louis began the transition from music manager to national celebrity with his first TV appearance as a judge on the Irish version of Popstars. He then went on to star in ITV’s Popstars: The Rivals where he became manager of smash hit girl band Girls Aloud, featuring another famous pop TV talent judge Cheryl Cole.
Another big success in the music world was as manager of Westlife, a band that filled the Irish boy band void after the demise of Boyzone. And the money continued to roll in as he took charge of Ronan Keating’s solo career.
From 2004, Louis became a household name as a judge alongside Simon Cowell and Sharon Osborne on ITV talent show The X Factor. He’s managed the careers of many X Factor contestants ever since, including Jedward, chart toppers G4 (remember them?) and Shayne Ward (remember him?).