One Direction’s Week in Review: 9/26
The band is on a break, but the boys aren’t.
One Direction last performed together on a Sunday night, Dec. 13th, 2015, on the season finale of the British iteration of “The X Factor.” They sang a single from their fifth album, accepted accolades from Simon Cowell and others, and then vanished into the night to begin a hiatus with no end-date. Between them, in the months since they last took the stage, they have officially announced very little — two solo record deals, the birth of a child, the founding of a golf management company. But each week they are out in the world, doing things, going places. This is what we know.
On Thursday, Niall Horan released his debut solo single — the first from any member of the band — and officially announced that he had signed a record deal with Capitol Records. “This Town” premiered simultaneously on Ryan Seacrest’s radio show and via a video on Vevo. “Been workin in the studio, wanted to share this song I just wrote with u guys,” Horan wrote in a tweet sharing the video. “thank you for always being there.” He spent Thursday morning doing radio interviews from a hotel room in Minnesota, where he was spending the week as an ambassador for the Ryder Cup.
Been workin in the studio, wanted to share this song I just wrote with u guys. thank you for always being there https://t.co/LVIUAXi5PW
Horan was massively gracious about the song’s reception, Snapchatting between interviews and tweeting his thanks several times through the weekend.
During interviews, Horan shared that he wrote the song in February or March, that he was working on an album that could be ready by the spring, and that the rest of the band knew he was putting out the song. When pressed, he insisted that the band would eventually perform together again. “For the foreseeable it’s our own projects,” he told Westwood One, “But I definitely would not rule and won’t let anyone rule out the return of One Direction, because it’s inevitable.”
Thursday also marked the release of Harry Styles’ three solo magazine covers for Another Man, which he had announced on Monday on Instagram. The 23rd edition of Another Man features three fashion shoots comprising 43 photos of Harry; 14 photos of personal items including his favorite articles of clothing (a Gucci shirt with “Styles” embroidered on the left breast, a pair of worn Chuck Taylors), books (Rumi, Bukowski, Hesse), albums (Rumors, Pet Sounds), and songs (“Breathe” by Pink Floyd, “She’s Got You” by Patsy Cline); an interview by Chelsea Handler; a transcribed conversation with Paul McCartney; a profile of artist Tomo Campbell, with photos taken by Styles; an interview with Liam Sparkes, the tattoo artist responsible for many of his most iconic tattoos; an essay about his childhood written by his sister Gemma Styles; and an introduction and dedication typewritten by Styles on watermarked letterhead. The magazine, which was only released in the U.K., sold out online and in shops instantly; copies are being sold on eBay for $80.
In the interview, Handler asked him if the band would do anything together again. “I don’t know,” Styles said. “I would never say we’ll never do anything again, but it’s good for us to be exploring different things. Maybe at some point everyone will want to do something again, but it’s better if it happens naturally like, ‘Hey, we all really want to do this again.’ If that were to happen it would be amazing. I would never rule that out. It’s the most important, greatest thing that ever happened to me, being in that band. It completely changed my life.”
Styles did not acknowledge the magazine on social media on release day, but did tweet at Horan. “Ahhh, a lovely tune my friend. Congratulations. H,” he wrote. “thank you Harry buddie . . Love ya,” replied Horan. Styles was not spotted out this week; he has not been seen publicly since Sept. 4.
Liam Payne also remained unseen this week. He tweeted at Horan: “good luck boss give him all your support huge day for him proud of you boss,” he wrote, followed by the hands-in-the-air emoji. “thank you Payno. Love you buddie. Call you when I’m off the phone from interviews .,” replied Horan.
Louis Tomlinson also showed support for Horan on Twitter. “Feeling super proud @NiallOfficial . You sound great ! Great to see you at your bday bash!!,” he wrote. Horan retweeted the message and added, “Love ya Tommo. thank you buddie . See you really soon.” Later that day, Tomlinson took photos with fans from the backseat of an SUV in a parking lot in LA.
Notable Adjacent News
Liam Payne’s girlfriend Cheryl Ann Tweedy Cole Fernadez-Visini attended an event for Loréal in Paris, providing gossip enthusiasts a wealth of pictures to study in search of a fetus. Earlier in the day she was photographed in London holding her coat closed over her stomach, adding fuel to the months-long speculation that she is expecting a baby with Payne. Her mother, Joan Callaghan, was recently photographed by a fan purchasing a pregnancy pillow at a Mothercare. In related news, Fernadez-Visini’s husband, Jean-Bernard Fernandez-Versini, has reportedly refused to sign the gag order that would allow divorce proceedings to proceed.
Cheryl's mum Joan Callaghan pictured buying pregnancy goods in Mothercare