“What Makes You Beautiful” and “Gotta Be You” were the only two singles released at that point, but they were already more than enough to make 1D an international phenomenon.
and Ireland in November 2011, quickly becoming the fastest selling album in the U.K.
The group’s debut album Up All Night was released in the U.K. (It only took one search for “One Direction Funny Moments” on YouTube for McGinnis to get hooked.) “ was almost like a pyramid scheme in the way that one girl would infiltrate your school and attach you to the fandom, and then you would attach people, too,” says Grace McGinnis, 21. The end of X Factor was just the beginning for the guys, with their efforts at building a sustainable fanbase quickly being validated by their popularity spreading like wildfire among a demographic of immensely dedicated young women. At the time, it cost around 33 pence to vote via phone. “They were such ‘normal’ lads, the type of guys you’d go to school with,” says Rhiannon Johnston, 22, who used to spend all of her pocket money voting for One Direction on X Factor. Video diaries uploaded during and after the show gave fans a glimpse into the off-stage personalities of the English-Irish boys they were spending hours cheering on. One Direction spent each week of its X Factor stint perfecting its harmony as a group, while also building and connecting with a loyal fan base that would be ready and willing to support them when their on-screen journey came to an end. This was all made possible by the group’s fervent international fanbase, characterized by its rabid devotion and accelerated by the rise of social media and music streaming, ultimately rivaling the fandom of any other boy band in history.Īs we approach the ten year anniversary of One Direction’s formation - with a new anniversary-celebrating 1D website launching next Thursday - Billboard is revisiting the groundbreaking career of one of the most successful boy bands in history, helped by the memories of the die-hard fans who were there for it all. 1 albums on the Billboard 200, six Billboard Hot 100 top 10 hits, four Video Music Awards, 28 Teen Choice Awards, two Saturday Night Live appearances, billions of streams - and that’s not even considering the solo success each member found, following Malik’s departure in 2015 and the rest of the group’s official hiatus in 2016. Over 300 shows played across four sold out world tours, four No. We’ve all been through this together and we’ll never forget it but also we’ve been in this relationship with the fans and that’s … that’s kind of as far as it goes.”Īnd, watching the video, that meaning becomes even more clear.The 30 Best Boy Band Albums of the Past 30 Years: Staff Picks “But actually,” Tomlinson says, “conceptually, ‘History’ is more about the relationship as a whole, you know? As a band. In an exclusive interview with EW, Tomlinson said that it is only natural for people to read into the song that it is about Malik. The video, by the way, features a number of clips of Malik from when he was still apart of the band. The guys have actually spoken out about this speculation, anticipating the eager interpretations in the wake of the video of One Direction fans everywhere. Luckily for us, this question is actually pretty easy to answer. So, to write a song called “History” that is largely about a relationship that has changed over time may have many people wondering: Is One Direction’s "History" video about Zayn Malik? But of course a big part of their past - the pink elephant in the One Direction room - is the member that is no longer apart of the group: Zayn Malik. And, as if a new One Direction video weren’t reason enough to celebrate, the band seemed to pay tribute to each other and their fans with the video that poignantly celebrates their past, all the way back to the very beginning. On Tuesday, rOne Direction released the video for “History,” the latest single off their hit album Made in the A.M., and it turned out to be a touching tribute to the band’s… well, history. It’s another banner day in the world of One Direction fans.