Rick Astley will always be remembered for his 1987 smash 'Never Gonna Give You Up' which topped charts all over the world and was best-selling single of the year, but he is still held in the highest regard in the world of pop. Starting out playing drums in clubs with the band FBI, he rocketed to fame after getting a job at the studio of hit-making production team Mike Stock, Matt Aitken and Pete Waterman. They soon put him in the studio and the result was the dance-floor filler 'Never Gonna Give You Up'. Astley's rich vocals and boy-next-door personality endeared him to fans and he became a major teen idol, racking up further hits with 'Whenever You Need Somebody', 'Together Forever' and a cover of the Nat King Cole ballad 'When I Fall in Love'. The hits gradually faded and at the age of 27 he announced his retirement from music. After ten years out, Astley returned to music with brand new music on album 'Keep It Turned On' in 2001. A 'Greatest Hits' record was also released, reaching number 16 in the UK Albums Chart. He went out on tour for the first time in over a decade and released an album of standards titled 'Portrait'. In 2008 he was awarded the Best Act Ever accolade at the MTV Europe Music Awards after an online campaign pushed his music once more; as a result of this 'Never Gonna Give You Up' returned to the charts. He toured with Boy George and Belinda Carlisle as part of the 1980s Here and Now Tour in 2009 and was revealed as a special guest on comedian Peter Kay's national tour in 2010. A brand new single 'Lights Out' was released in 2010 charting at number 15 in the UK Airplay Charts. 'Keep Singing', the lead single from his eighth album '50', was released in 2016 followed by 'Dance'. His ninth album was announced for 2018 under the title 'Beautiful Life'.
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