One Direction is a popular new boy band that consists of five guys: Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson. These guys were first seen on The X Factor UK where they finished third on the seventh series of the show.
However, they were not One Direction; in the beginning of the series, they were all performing as individuals. Simon did not feel they would go very far as individuals and put them into the group.
“I love the fact that they are actually talented,” junior Ginnie Yu said. “They were formed as a group on the X Factor UK where they didn’t even know each other and they made it all the way to the final three.”
After coming in third on The X Factor UK, they signed with Sony Music where they released their first single “What Makes You Beautiful.” This song was released on Sept. 11, 2011, and it quickly skyrocketed to the top of many charts such as iTunes where it came in number 10 on the top 100 songs chart. “What Makes You Beautiful” was the talk amongst many helping One Direction get more recognition. They have gotten so much recognition that at this year’s Brit Awards One Direction was happy to accept an award for “What Makes You Beautiful” as the best British single. They went up against Adele “Someone Like You,” The Wanted’s “Glad You Came,” Jessie J featuring Bob’s “Price tag” and more.
“I first heard ‘What Makes You Beautiful’ on the radio, and I liked it a lot,” junior Hillary DeGracia said. “A few weeks after first hearing it many of my friends began to talk about it too, and we all began to obsess over them.”
On Nov.18, 2011, One Direction released their debut album Up All Night in Ireland then released it Nov. 21 in the United Kingdom. The album quickly peaked at number two on UK Albums Charts selling over 130,000 copies. It was also one of the fastest selling albums of 2011 in the UK Albums Charts. One Direction then released Up All Night in the United States on March 13, 2012.
“I didn’t really know they had a whole album out up until recently,” junior Marium Sadiq said. “I only knew of ‘What Makes You Beautiful’ and I loved it. I would not stop listening to it now all I listen to is Up All Night.”
Recently One Direction hosted a contest for their fans in which the winning city would get a visit from the guys in One Direction. This contest was open to everyone and millions participated, but only one city won. One Direction was happy to announce in a video that Dallas won the Bring1DToUs contest and they would soon be making a trip down there to host a special event. Fans were stoked when they announced the winner and are anxiously awaiting their arrival.
“I am very excited that they are coming to Dallas to do a special event,” Yu said. “Me and my best friends are definitely going to see them.”
Later this month One Direction will also be seen on tour with Big Time Rush helping them to get closer to the United States and have a deeper connection with their fans here. Aside from going on tour with Big Time Rush, One Direction filmed an episode of iCarly on Jan. 30 that will soon be previewed on Nickelodeon.
