X marks the swap ... successful singer and TV judge Ronan Keating has turned his hand to acting.
Sarah Whyte, The Sydney Morning Herald, reports
Singer and talent-spotter Ronan Keating will soon face new critics.
The music industry is entering a brave new world this year, according to the Irish singer Ronan Keating.
Subscription music websites, the shrinking of traditional media and the rise of social networking sites are just some of the challenges forcing change on the industry, the judge of The X Factor says.
''It looks like that's the way it's going to go and it's scary and it's tough but you have to embrace it,'' the former Boyzone singer tells S from his home in Ireland.
''Record companies made a big mistake [in] not embracing the internet when it first happened,'' he says.
Television talent shows such as The X Factor and Australian Idol therefore come into their own to find new talent, Keating says.
''I think it's great … when the record companies are struggling and there's not enough money out there to go and discover people,'' he says.
''If you're an up-and-coming star and you want to do well, then a show like The X Factor is really important.'' But he would say that, wouldn't he?
A former winner of The X Factor, Keating protege Altiyan Childs didn't make the most of his opportunities and was instead mired in controversy last year. But Keating defends him. ''He is a bit left of centre but he has talent and he's different and that's what we were looking for and that's what the music industry needs,'' he says.
Keating is making a few changes of his own - eyeing up the even tougher film industry.
''I've gone to a lot of auditions over the year and I've just never been ready and I have never been good enough,'' he says. ''[But] I feel over the last two years, I've grown into my skin and feel comfortable … to prove to people that I can act.''
Last year he scored his first acting gig in the musical Goddess, due to be released this year.
Keating realises the transition from musician to actor is no easy move.
''It's harder for someone, like a singer, to prove they can be an actor because people immediately want to say, 'Oh, he's no good,''' Keating says. ''Someone like Harry Connick jnr has totally established himself as an actor, probably more than a singer … Jon Bon Jovi has made some films along the way and he's done well.''
Ronan Keating performs at the State Theatre on the January 26 and 27 during his Australian tour. For ticket information, go to ticketmaster.com.au.
