One Direction is an English-Irish pop boy band based in London, consisting of Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, and previously Zayn Malik. They signed with Simon Cowell’s record label Syco Records after being formed and finishing third in the seventh series of the British televised singing competition The X Factor in 2010. Check out their journey on the competition here.

Propelled to international success by the power of social media, their two albums Up All Night and Take Me Home, released in 2011 and 2012 respectively, broke several records, topped the charts of most major markets, and generated hit singles, including “What Makes You Beautiful” and “Live While We’re Young.”

Their third album, Midnight Memories, introduced a maturing sound. Singles including “Best Song Ever” and “Story of My Life” became smash hits. The music video for “Best Song Ever” even broke the one-day Vevo record, racking up 10.9 million views in 24 hours.

The band’s fourth album, appropriately named Four, continued the pattern of each album becoming more mature. Fan favorites included “Steal My Girl,”“Night Changes,” and “No Control”. The fans loved “No Control” so much that they campaigned for it to be a single, though it was never officially released as one.

On March 25, 2015, it was announced that Zayn Malik was leaving the band. Directioners were left shocked and confused as to why Zayn departed. Fans were originally told that he wanted to live a normal life, but news soon broke that Zayn signed a deal with RCA, and he pursued a solo career as ZAYN.

However, Niall, Harry, Louis, and Liam didn’t let this drag them down. The boys worked incredibly hard on their fifth album, Made In The A.M., from which “Drag Me Down” was the lead single. The album dropped November 13th and was their last album before their (supposed) 18 months hiatus.
More than two years later, One Direction is still on their hiatus and all of the members are working on their own solo careers.

21 Songs, 1 Hour 12 Minutes

EDITORS’ NOTES

Take Me Home picks up where One Direction's debut album left off, all punchy pop-rock anthems (the delirious opening salvo of “Live While We’re Young” and “Kiss You”) and tender acoustic balladry (the Ed Sheeran-cowritten “Little Things” and “Over Again”). Perhaps the album's most intriguing moments, however, are the Dr. Luke-produced, Queen-referencing “Rock Me” and the plaintive “Change My Mind”—both of which hint at the band’s more mature, stadium-slaying sound that was to come.

EDITORS’ NOTES

Take Me Home picks up where One Direction's debut album left off, all punchy pop-rock anthems (the delirious opening salvo of “Live While We’re Young” and “Kiss You”) and tender acoustic balladry (the Ed Sheeran-cowritten “Little Things” and “Over Again”). Perhaps the album's most intriguing moments, however, are the Dr. Luke-produced, Queen-referencing “Rock Me” and the plaintive “Change My Mind”—both of which hint at the band’s more mature, stadium-slaying sound that was to come.

• 21 Songs, 1 Hour 12 Minutes
• Released: Nov 9, 2012
• ℗ (C) 2012 Simco Limited under exclusive license to Sony Music Entertainment UK Limited

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