Simon Webbe is delighted Blue’s former young fans in Russia and Kazakhstan have grown into wealthy oligarchs who now pay them to sing at their weddings.
The 39-year-old singer has revealed the boy band – also comprised of Lee Ryan, Duncan James and Antony Costa – are riding the gravy train in oil-rich countries where their fans now have lots of disposable wealth and, luckily, still in love their music from the early noughties.
The ‘All Rise’ hitmakers are now coining it in whilst having great fun too.
Simon said: ”We were in Lithuania over the weekend, we’re off to Russia and Kazakhstan and all that, where the corporate gigs are. Where the money is. All of a sudden, those kids who grew up on our music in these countries are now execs of banks and oil companies or their dad’s rich and they want Blue at their wedding.”
Simon has 11-year-old daughter Alanah Jones with his ex-partner Nicola Jones and is engaged to be married to Ayshen Kemal and admitted making them happy is his top priority and so he’s not too proud to take the pay cheques on offer.
The ‘One Love’ singer told Shortlist magazine: ”Now it’s about paying the bills. It’s making sure that my daughter’s going to be fine for the future. It’s making sure my fiancée gets the wedding she deserves. I’ve just got different priorities now. I don’t feel I need to impress any more.”
Joking about the band’s effort on the ‘Eurovision Song Contest’ when they represented the United Kingdom in 2011 with the song ‘I Can’, he quipped: ”I mean, if you’re trying to impress, you don’t do f***ing ‘Eurovision’, do you?”
Blue are gearing up to release an autobiography detailing the ups and down of their 16-year career, and have ”really enjoyed” having the chance to open up about their lives.
A source said in February: ”This book has more highs and lows than ‘Game of Thrones’, and almost as much drama. They really enjoyed opening up – they’ve been through some real tough times both individually and as a band.”
The book is set to detail the secret battle with depression which left 38-year-old Simon contemplating suicide, whilst Lee, 33, opens up about his throat cancer scare which left him unable to perform for almost 18 months.
