Robbie Williams set to sign Las Vegas residency deal

Trying to get foreign visitors? He had one hit in the US, so this is a head scratcher. I really like him, but the average American has no idea who he is.

Probably a short residency deal - or a small venue? It's just weird.

This hack gets a six figure residency deal!?! FUCK THIS WORLD!

Wait--"six figures" could mean only $100,000.

That's not that much.

I'm sorry what? He's not even popular. He had one song in the us.

This will end in tears...

Exciting and wonderful!

He spent at least 20 years drowning in drink and drugs. He's got the face he earned.

Lots of Brits go to Vegas. Whether enough of 'em will go to see his shows there is another question.

Residency has come to mean less than a year at Caesar's - a lot less. I just read about a piano-bar pianist having a "Residency" in the lounge on a Celebrity cruise ship. It used to mean he had a job there.

That said, I like him and I'd see him if I was in Vegas. How many other people will (I suspect not many) is another story.

I’d tap that ass

He is a smoker, that breakdown in elastin was earned with his addiction.

[quote]Also, why does he look ten-fifteen years older than he really is (which is 45)?

He's British, that's why.

He is/was pretty popular in other European countries, and maybe Australia/NZ, so that tourist market would probably go for him over Donny and Marie, Shania Twain, Boyz II Men, etc.

[quote]Robbie Williams has become one of the UK's most successful artists of all time, selling over 75 million records worldwide and sustaining a career for nearly three decades.

Never heard of him or familiar with his music.

Your Royal Highness / R9, of course you would.

"Honey, let's fly to Vegas to see Robbie Williams this weekend!"

Sure, Jan.

I think hes a good singer,but I agree not well known here.He was quite the cutie to me,still is. What do 45 year olds look like in YOUR world OP?

He can do a lounge act ala Frank, Dean, Sammy and sing pop hits. Not just UK but Europeans will know who he is and probably a test case. If the casinos can get big name European talent and still make money and draw crowds by pay Celine 29 million dollars?

I am not OP but 45 looks a hell of a lot better than that in my world

He used to be apart of a UK based boy band back in the early 90s called 'Take That', None of them could sing very well, dance or act even but they were very hot and young so that was basically the only appeal they had. They honed in a predominantly gay male audience before they went mainstream then toned down the 'gay' stuff. Guess you could say they were one of the first gay baiting boy bands of that time before gay baiting became the norm. After, drugs, alcohol, cheating, tantrums, feuds and school girl drama they finally broke up in 96. Robbie decided to embark on a solo career, even though he's one of the weaker singers in the group, unfortunately he was a success mainly in the UK and Europe. You Americans are lucky we had to endure him for several more years before he sank further into booze and drugs then finally disappeared. In the mid to late 2000s resurgence of popular bands from the 90s/80s seemed to be a thing and the nightmare that is Robbie Williams began all over again. I hope he takes up a permanent residence there you guys deserve it.

One of their best gay baiting videos.

Robbie Williams? Qu'est-ce que c'est?

[quote] I think hes a good singer,but I agree not well known here.He was quite the cutie to me,still is. What do 45 year olds look like in YOUR world OP?

In our world, where people also apparently have better typing and punctuation skills than in yours, men look much better at that age.

He looks so bloated in the face now and all those years of smoking did a number on his skin.

Robbie had a great run in the late '90s and early '00s. Most would have expected Gary Barlow to have the soaring solo success from Take That but Robbie achieved huge success.

His later music just doesn't appeal to me, but those first five years were excellent.

Robbie is still big in Europe, not just the UK. His music may not be my thing but I really like the guy, he's fun. All his Graham Norton interviews are absolute gems.

He was briefly popular in the US, but nothing much since the early 2000s. Kylie Minogue experienced success around the same time strangely enough, but it didn't endure over here for some reason.

Take That also did not break the US market either.

I went to a concert circa 2005. He’s hot!!!

He's a diaper fetishist.

He's morphing into Morrissey.

European here: used to listen to lots of his music in the past.

what type of British accent is that called that he has?

He has a Stoke accent.

[quote]Also, why does he look ten-fifteen years older than he really is (which is 45)?

As someone who's 45 just like Robbie, I can attest that he has aged awfully!!! Looking at that picture, he looked almost like George Clooney at first glance.

He signed a residency contract with Hash House A Go Go.

He and his wife were on X Factor and wow, talk about lack of chemistry. I actually forgot they were married because they barely interacted.

I like Robbie Williams. I would go see him in Vegas.

Didn't he used to play his guitar in the nude? That kind of got me hot.

Robbie models his opening outfit.

You may ask, " Who will come to see Robbie Williams?" Here is an example of one of his fans. She'll be there.

Men playing instruments in the nude should stick to brass or woodwinds.

Just how large will this Vegas venue be?

Robbie is great. Americans aren't allowed to have bad boys - just rapists and pedophiles. So the Jack Nicholson's, Ozzy Osbournes, Robert Downeys, Steven Tylers and others are just cuted up for American consumption.

Robbie is a bad boy and a delightful one at that. He's not handsome, but he is good time sexy. And his music is good fun ironic and sexy too. He's put on a great show. I wonder if Nicole will join him for their hit? I'm going to see him.

r41 oh dear...Jack Nicholson's what?

^ Fuck you pedantic ancient F@G.^

He was popular everywhere except the USA so I imagine they are bringing him in for tourists. He used to do sold out concerts in NZ and Australia and I think a lot of non-Americans (although not myself) would go see him. And, like a previous poster said, six figures might not necessarily be mid to high 6 figures.

R29, what the fuck is wrong with you?

I know nobody will believe me, but I forgot to say that I actually met him about 15 years ago and chatted to him briefly at an event. He was a nice guy and very flirty, so I was very surprised when he ended up marrying a woman because I could have sworn he was gay. And I was not a fan, so it's not like he needed to pander to me. It was strange.

The Brits are like that, R46

He's bi, always has been, hooking up with the gentlemen as well as with the ladies depending on what / who was available.

They gave Janet a residency.... proof they'll give anyone one! He'll probably sell more tickets than she did!

R48 To this day I regret not slipping him my phone number just for shits and giggles.

R21 / R48 / R50, he would've hooked up with you.

Sorry for breaking it to you, but he wasn't very picky in the past. No idea about his love life these days though, he's married with children, but I guess there's still the occasional hook-up.

American here, I discovered him years ago and love him, so I would go to see him. I am surprised, though. If they wanted to go with a big foreign name to attract overseas tourists, I'm surprised they didn't try to get Kylie Minogue. She would have appealed to the foreign tourists, and have some appeal to Americans. She had two major periods of success in the US, in the late 1980s and then again in the early 2000s, and has maintained a small but loyal number of fans here.

R51 I wish you wouldn't have said that. I'll go to my grave regretting that one. The main reason that I didn't was because there were other people around and I didn't want to embarrass him. And not only am I younger than him, but I was pretty good looking back then too. Oh well, at least I can take comfort in the fact that he looks bloated and not good looking now.

R48: Exactly!

[quote]Take That also did not break the US market either.

Take That had a good run with their single “Back for Good” in 1995.

His Residency can’t do any worse than Janet’s.

Wow, his former bandmate Gary Barlow is actually older than him. Barlow looks pretty great and Williams is...well honestly I still think he's rather sexy. But he sure doesn't look like the younger one.

I thought he did a decent job on Mork & Mindy.

The average American has horendously trashy taste in music. That's why Robbie's music never caught on here.

I like his music very much, and I hope people will go see him in Vegas and learn to appreciate his more mature selection of songs.

I'd like you all to post pics of your 45yr old American men you deem look so much younger.... Waiting

I adore this song but imagine the whole show looking and sounding like this. Naw I'm good.

He's been trying to make in the US for decades. It's never going to happen.

Young people in the US are not going to listen to a singer with the catalog Robbie Williams has. He appeals to an older demographic. A demographic not big on paying high ticket prices. Since Vegas is full of older people he might just end up being a big draw there. Of course a lot of people will have to give him a try first, because a high percentage of them will have never heard of him before. But I think once they get a taste, word of mouth will make him a success.

He has the same problem Rupert Everett has had. Like Rupert Everett, his huge sex appeal when he was young depended on his his being a handsome bad boy, the smouldering type who chain-smoked and did drugs and drank a lot. But that also of course did a number on his looks and aged him much more quickly than otherwise.

Everett seems to have finally realized he cannot use plastic surgery to be a pretty boy anymore, since the results of his last surgeries were so horrific. I am curious what Robbie will do.

Who?

There was an insane level of hype around Robbie Williams in the UK from around 1997 to 2005. He was all over the place. In one of life's cruel ironies, his career started to go downhill at exactly the same time as his old group, Take That, reformed without him and revived their success.

He still maintains 2 California homes (1 in Beverly Hills and 1 in Malibu). I don't know if it's because he's confident of career success here or what, but that's a lot of money to be investing in a country some say you have no chance in.

For R60 Adam Rodrigez

I was just in Vegas last week. The Wynn (or Encore, same place I guess) was advertising an upcoming Robbie Williams appearance. I didn’t pay too much attention other than that...

R67 His career may or may not have much of a chance here, but his money - in this case, invested in real estate - certainly does: a safe financial environment, likely appreciation, potential income, tax benefits, residency benefits (invest enough $ in the US and you get permanent residency should you desire same: it works for the Chinese so why not Robbie?) and assuming one place or the other isn't rented, you get to live there when you're in town.

Read this as Robin Williams and my first thought was, "That's tacky!"

I've heard some celebrities lie about their age.

I wouldn’t be surprised if some folks would be expecting to see a stand up comedy show.

"you're not Robin WIllaims!"

r28 nailed it. Thread closed.

I can't stay too long. I have to take a big shit!

[quote]He still maintains 2 California homes (1 in Beverly Hills and 1 in Malibu)

He needs to be deported.

It will be fine. British people travel and he's got enough of a following, maybe. Flights to Vegas are cheap.

Only song I know by him is "we've got stars directing our fate...millenium" Seems like a funny guy on Graham Norton.

When Jessica Simpson covers one of your songs... you’re officially a flop.

Six figures, you say? As in: $1000.28?

R67 No one is saying he doesn't have money. We are saying no one cares about him in the US.

R57 Gary Barlow is a ghastly hack. He's a tax-avoiding, Tory-voting, royal-arse-licking cunt. He makes Ed Sheeran look and sound exciting and edgy. I so glad his solo career went down the toilet, if anyone deserved to fail he did. He must have done a deal with Satan for his comeback success, I can't think of any rational reason for it.

He was really happy that most of his tickets were purchased in the USA. There are a lot of aspiring British actors and Asians in tech working in California, Robbie.

UK pre wedding hen parties and 'landmark' birthday celebration organisers still care very much about him, r81. Trips are being planned, flights being booked, women aged 35 to 55 but believing that they look that DL 10 years younger are Vegas bound. Be warned.

Stateside..... Genuinely interested do you like any of our musicians?? Our country would fit several times in most of your states but I think we've put out a good bunch, Beatles, Rolling Stones, Elton John, George Michael, Queen etc??

R85, don't let these naysayers fool you. The US is a country of almost 330 million people so there will always be a sizeable contingent of people who do or don't like any particular entertainer. If only a tiny percentage of people liked his music that would be millions of people. He'll do fine in Vegas. He puts on a great show I hear.

And yes, Americans love English musicians. Most of their fortunes have been made primarily in America. The US is just a different type of egg for them to crack. Why else would most of the big names either have homes here or have their primary residences here.

Cheers R85 good to know, you certainly have an advantage over us in regards to the amount of output... Evidently size can matter!

Grandpa Williams in OP's photo...

And yes he smoke and drank his way to that.

He's still hot. I'd do him.

R85 All that you mentioned are amazing and very talented.

Look no one knew who Danny Gans was but he had a special theatre built for him at the Mirage and people would come into the show and say "is this guy any good"? Cirque Du Soleil took over the old Seigfreid and Roy theatre.

If no one really knew Danny Gans, but he still managed to sell out 70% every night, and Robbie Williams is very, very famous in Britain, then he will certainly do as well as Danny Gans did, plus some. I can see it now, Robbie will do a comedy routine in between acts. "bet you Yanks thought this was going to be Robin Williams, eh? nope we didn't bring him back, sorry!"

I really like him, he is one of the few male singers that I listen.

Gary Barlow is such a cunt. I have seen two of his musicals and have been burned twice, more fool me.

But, He's the One, though!

R91 Robbie's a national treasure here for sure, he hasn't got GMs voice but he's a hell of a showman without all the airs and graces of so many. R93 Agreed, never undstood the hype of Gary.

He really has started to look like Morissey, and that's not a good thing.

I caught his show in Vegas. This guy is absolutely the best entertainer out there. His show was awesome. Every date sold out.

Robbie was ok but I preferred the twink in the crop top

R97 Robbie, go to bed!

R98 Mark was cute, but it went away.

That's a bad picture of Mark. Pretty much all of Take That have aged well. Robbie admitted to fucking up his face with "enhancements."

[quote]Robbie admitted to fucking up his face with "enhancements."

Kind of like his manly looking wife?

Do enough foreigners go to Vegas to make this work, i'm skeptical

Is this "residency" in the parking lot at the Las Vegas Golden Corral? Like a dinner theater show?

R104 Yes.

R104 They refer to it as a little off the strip.

Robbie Williams was a huge star worldwide...except for the US but since millions of foreign tourists come to Vegas every year, he might actually sell well. And, as someone noted up above, there are millions of women from about 35 to 55 who are probably planning special trips to see their Robbie.

Manchester in the late 80s early 90s was a fun and exciting place. I have happy memories of some fun up the alleyway by The Haçienda with a certain someone.

During his show he asked, "how may people from (specific locations all over the globe)" and it appeared there were a lot of people from places other than the USA. Oh and he admitted to being bi. Of course, this being Robbie, it could be for attention.

His wife was in the audience and she absolutely has had work done. She looked prettier before.

Also Dame Edna wasn't the huge star she was in the UK and Australia but she still managed to sell out B'way and tours mostly based on her gay fanbase in the US.

Who did you fuck in Manchester?

Dame Edna was hysterically funny. Made appearances on all the talk shows. A lot of people knew who she was.

[quote]His wife was in the audience and she absolutely has had work done.

Ya think?!

I'd like see him naked.

R108... Shit.... It was probably me, a school friend was the DJ there... Oh wait I'm female and waaaaaay before fluid. Robbie has always left the bi line blurry, just as GM did regarding women... Both of them knew/know EXACTLY what would maximise their fan base.

r109, Robbie "admitted being bi" during the show?? How did that come up?

Does he hand out free samples of lube at the show?

I'm not a Robbie Fan but this is hysterical.

He had big problems with his sexuality early on in his career, and sued a tabloid in 2005 because they claimed he was gay. But I guess now his career has wound down the gays are his friends again.

[quote] there are millions of women from about 35 to 55 who are probably planning special trips to see their Robbie.

'millions"????

R120 hundreds ?

okay, 20 !

Please. The entire Vegas show was gay-themed. Pre-show, he had a bellhop guy walking around, screaming "delivery for Mr. Robbie Williams!" with balloons that spelled GAY. He also talked a lot about his sexuality while on stage and made jokes throughout the show. He kept pointing to men in the audience, asking them if they would grow beards because he likes bears. He also stated he preferred straight men because he enjoys "turning them." He then told the audience that if we ever wondered about his sexual preference, this song would clear it up. The song was "swings both ways." He was wearing a bubblegum pink suit with a pink feather boa.

Yeah, that story on Graham Norton made me really sad that he wasn't bigger in America. Such a fun guy with that British twinkle in his eye. I think he blows Justin out of the water.

R123 He can drop the bi shtick because most gays don't care now that he's married, has kids, is old, and ugly now. That ship has sailed.

And the fact that he once sued a tabloid for claiming he was gay shows what spineless sack of shit he is.

R123 Are you sure that all happened ?

Does he dance like Michael Flatley?

Let’s face it, Gary Barlow’s artistic triumph was singing backup to Elton John on Can You Feel The Love Tonight?.

He also used to trade gay innuendo (if you can even call it that) with English campster Julian Clary, with Wiliams asking Clary: "Are you receiving me?" (nudge nudge, wink wink), and so on. I don't think anyone ever really thought Williams was completely straight.

R126, yes, Rose, it happened.

Look up his Vegas show on youtube. Plenty of evidence.

R123 He irritates me but having a bit of inside knowledge here I do think I should defend him.

Robbie himself didn’t instigate that legal action against the newspapers his management did it all. This was around the time he was about to sign or had signed an enormous new record deal.

Back in the 1990’s and early 2000’s Robbie was effectively gay. He didn’t even try to hide it and this made matters complicated for people within the media. As on one hand Robbie would be at parties getting up to stuff with guys, then on the other Max Clifford would be encouraging newspapers to run tacky (made up) stories about female fans who’d had sex with Robbie, all paid for by Clifford who was in turn paid by Robbie’s management. Mel B even outed Robbie on a TV show.

You had a situation whereby Robbie would have been an out gay personality, but his record label and management were going to great lengths to keep this hidden. However, the legal action against the newspaper changed everything dramatically. Because they won and Robbie was awarded compensation.

When it was discovered Jeffrey Archer had falsely sued a newspaper for printing “stories” he ended up in prison. Therefore, once Robbie was awarded that money, he could never ever come out. If it had been revealed he had indeed engaged with same sex, he would be in contempt of court and could face charges.

Not long after the court case, Robbie left the U.K. and went to live in America. He was out there for years and Brits will notice he only came back to the U.K. once he had ‘the wife’ with him.

I don’t know anything about his marriage now, but I do know 15 or 20 years ago he was miserable because he wanted to be out.

Wow. Then I'm guessing that Ayda is in on the charade. Wonder if it's worth it. Robbie did say that he gave her the the best gift ever...not ever having to work again.

His greed is off putting, he nickel and dimes his fans. But I've always liked him.

[quote]Robbie himself didn’t instigate that legal action against the newspapers his management did it all. This was around the time he was about to sign or had signed an enormous new record deal.

It was after that enormous record deal, I think at the time one of the biggest in history. And I doubt he paid the tabloid back a single dime for them guessing correctly he was gay.

Even though he's a legend now and a real showman, he never really lived up to the massive expectations placed upon him. Except for one or two (nearly) classic tunes... He really did put his heart and soul into what he did but the results were, on the whole mediocre.

It was absolutely to do with that record deal that everything played out with the suing of the newspaper and eventually him moving to the US. I don’t think the record company made back what they paid out. When he was living in Los Angeles he never worked and he was out there for years. I don’t know for sure, but he was likely desperately unhappy living there and wanted to come back to the U.K., but wouldn’t have come home without “the wife” for legal security. I don’t know what his and Ayda’s arrangement is. It could be a real marriage, but it’s more likely they are genuine best friends with some kind of agreement.

Williams is a product of a time. But his sexual inclinations were never kept secret away from the public.

The Guatemalan president said in 2014 :

"If they want to attack the root of the problem, I think that they need to think about making investments in countries like Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras," he said. "The United States is spending about $20 billion on border security and other border crossings where they process children and where they treat them and all those other processes. We say that with just 10 percent of that money that you’re investing on the U.S. border, it could be spent at minimum in the three countries and I’m confident that it would be much more profitable than investing it on border security or border control with Mexico."

They're coming for money and jobs, so make jobs in Guatalmala, El Salvador, all the poor places. DUH

R135 So does he want us to send Robbie to perform in Tegucigalpa?

I'm an American Robbie fan. Well, actually, I'm fucking obsessed with him. I went to one of the earlier shows in Vegas and met him and just about shat myself. He was lovely and seemed crazier than a shithouse rat. The show sucked but I loved it. I'm in London right now to see him at Hyde Park tomorrow. I'm not proud of any of this, BTW.

R134, I'm trying to recall where I saw it - probably here - but I'm sure I read somewhere that Ayda's mother had been shopping her around Hollywood for ages, trying to find a wealthy husband for her.

And she did.

He has a nice ass.

[quote]When he was living in Los Angeles he never worked and he was out there for years. I don’t know for sure, but he was likely desperately unhappy living there and wanted to come back to the U.K.

Nonsense. He has always spoken about how he loves L.A. and still has two homes there. The only reason he returned to the UK was because he needed to in order to revive his career.

If he only came back to the UK to revive his career why did he spend £17.5million on a house (that needed substantial work)?

He could have rented or bought an apartment.

R141 Because he has shitloads of money and renting is a waste if you're going to be spending a lot of time in a certain place.

r137, say more about the shows in Vegas you saw, please. What about them sucked?

Robbie and his wife have ZERO chemistry as evident by their X Factor appearance. It was a shit season in general but they added nothing. You could barely tell they were married since there was little interaction or flirting between them.

R141 He didn't come back to the UK for his career as such he actually came back because he wanted his kids schooled here and they not have American accents, Robbie's as George Michael was, he could be away a long time but the fans flock in the UK however long between gigs

There are so many worse people to like than Robbie Williams. He's aiight.

[quote]Here he's 27 and looks 45...

No, 45 year olds look older than that, esp with their crow's feet and the weatherbeaten skin.

I can't believe a thread on Robbie Williams has almost 150 replies. Well done, Robbie!

"Well Did You Evah?" with John Lovitz (who's even shorter than Robbie)

"Bloody wanker - no, you were the woman last time, I want to be the woman"

It was the reunion with his former boy band that resurrected his fading career. Once he used them, he went off on his own again.

This thread is what it is because Robbie, himself, is likely posting.

R148 Not all good.

148 Is probably Ayda

R143, he sang a lot of cover songs in Vegas. I think he was worried that American audiences wouldn't know any of his songs, so he only actually sang a few of them. I'm hoping if he does come back to Vegas, he'll add more of his own music.

Didn't he take out a superinjunction regarding a story about his male hairdresser?

Robbie Williams looks like the spawn of Morrissey and a jar of goo.

I don't think most Americans even know who he is.

*don't

R156 Or care.