Niall Horan
Niall Horan | |
---|---|
File:Niallflicker.png Horan in October 2017 | |
Born | Niall James Horan 13 September 1993 |
Nationality | Irish |
Occupations |
|
Musical career | |
Instruments |
|
Years active | 2010–present |
Labels | |
Website | niallhoran |
Niall James Horan (/ˈnaɪəl ˈhɔːrɪn/;[1] born 13 September 1993) is an Irish singer and songwriter. He is best known as a member of the boy band One Direction.[2] In 2010, Horan auditioned as a solo artist for British televised singing competition The X Factor. After being eliminated as a solo performer, Horan joined four other contestants to form One Direction. The band has released five commercially successful albums, performed on four worldwide tours, and won a number of awards.
Following the band's hiatus in 2016, Horan signed a recording deal as a solo artist with Capitol Records. He released the singles "This Town", "Slow Hands" and "Too Much to Ask" from his debut studio album Flicker, which was released on 20 October 2017. The album debuted at number one in Ireland and the United States, as well as charting within the top three in Australia and the UK.
Early life
Niall James Horan was born on 13 September 1993 in Mullingar, Ireland. His parents, Bobby Horan and Maura Gallagher, divorced when he was five years old, so he and his brother Greg Horan had to live in both houses for some time. They later decided to move indefinitely in with their father.[3] He attended St. Kenny's National School primary school and, as a teen, Coláiste Mhuire, a Catholic boys school, which are both located in or near Mullingar. Horan started playing guitar when his brother got one for Christmas but failed to play it, so Horan started to play with it and taught himself how to do it by playing it off YouTube. His aunt discovered his talent one day when she was in the car with Niall as he started singing. She originally thought the radio was on. As a teenager he performed at the Mullingar Arts Centre (in a fund-raiser for the local football team, the Shamrocks). He was also bagging a support slot with former X Factor contestant Lloyd Daniels at the famous Academy club in Dublin.[4]
Music career
2010: The X Factor
In 2010, at sixteen years old, Niall auditioned for the seventh series of The X Factor in Dublin.[5] He sang "So Sick", and received mixed comments from the judges. Louis Walsh was in his favour, but Cheryl Cole and guest judge Katy Perry, felt he needed some time to grow. Simon voted to let him through, Cheryl said no, and Louis quickly added in his yes, and left Niall's fate up to Katy. She decided to vote yes, and Niall was put through to bootcamp.
At bootcamp, Niall sang "Champagne Supernova", but failed to qualify for the "Boys" category. After a suggestion from guest judge Nicole Scherzinger, Niall was put into a group with four other boys, who also failed to move on in the competition, but since they were too good to let go, the judges decided to agree with Nicole. Niall, along with Harry Styles, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik, formed One Direction. Styles came up with the band name, which he thought would sound good when announcer Peter Dickson read their name out on the live shows. Subsequently, the group got together for two weeks to get to know each other and to practice. For their qualifying song at "judges' houses" and their first song as a group, One Direction sang an acoustic version of "Torn". Simon Cowell later commented that the performance convinced him that the group "were confident, fun, like a gang of friends, and kind of fearless as well." Within the first four weeks of the live shows, they were Cowell's last act in the competition. During the competition, the band performed different songs such as Kelly Clarkson's "My Life Would Suck Without You" and Bonnie Tyler's "Total Eclipse of the Heart", quickly gaining popularity in the UK. Nonetheless, they finished in third place, behind runner-up Rebecca Ferguson and winner Matt Cardle.
2011–2015: Breakthrough with One Direction
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/Niall_Horan_2014.jpg/180px-Niall_Horan_2014.jpg)
Following The X Factor, One Direction had been signed by Cowell to a reported £2 million Syco record contract. They began recording their debut album in January 2011, they flew over to Los Angeles to record it. In February 2011, the boy band and other contestants from the series participated in The X Factor Live Tour. During the tour, the group performed for 500,000 people throughout the UK. After the tour concluded in April 2011, the group continued working on their debut album. Recording took place in Stockholm, London and Los Angeles, as One Direction worked with producers Carl Falk, Savan Kotecha, Steve Mac and Rami Yacoub, among others.
In 2011, they released their first studio album, Up All Night. It debuted at number one on the United States Billboard 200, selling 176,000 copies in its first week. This led to One Direction becoming the first British band to debut its first studio album at number one. Their first single, "What Makes You Beautiful", reached number one in Ireland, Mexico and the UK.[6][7][8] The subsequent singles, "Gotta Be You", "One Thing" and "More than This", had moderate success, being successful in some countries, but failing in others.[9][10][11] To promote the album, they embarked on the Up All Night Tour and released the tour's DVD, Up All Night: The Live Tour.[12][13]
In November 2012, they released their second studio album, Take Me Home. This album had a better reception than their first album, reaching number one in the UK and becoming their first album to top the UK chart. It also reached the first spot in Australia, Canada, the United States, Ireland and New Zealand.[14][15][16][17] "Live While We're Young", one of the singles, reached number one in Ireland and New Zealand, while "Little Things" reached number one in the UK.[18][19] The third single, "Kiss You", made it to several charts, but never topped any.[20] Additionally, they embarked on their second tour, the Take Me Home Tour, which covered four continents. Their movie This Is Us, directed by Morgan Spurlock was mostly shot during the tour.[21] The film grossed more than $30 million worldwide its first weekend in theatres.[citation needed] Horan played guitar for Take Me Home.[22]
They also sang a medley of Blondie's "One Way or Another" and The Undertones' "Teenage Kicks" called "One Way or Another (Teenage Kicks)", in order to raise funds for Comic Relief.[23][24]
The band's third studio album, Midnight Memories, was released on 25 November 2013. Their fourth album, Four, was released on 17 November 2014. This album is One Direction's last album as a five-piece. Their fifth album, Made in the A.M., was released on 13 November 2015. It reached number one in several counties including the UK, beating Justin Bieber's Purpose. This album is One Direction's last album before the hiatus.
2016–present: Flicker
In September 2016, it was announced that Horan had signed a solo deal with Capitol Records.[25] On 29 September 2016 Horan released his debut solo single "This Town".[26] Since its release, it has peaked at number 9 on the UK Singles Chart,[27] and number 20 on the US Billboard Hot 100.[28]
On 4 May 2017, Horan released his second solo single "Slow Hands".[29] It also entered the top 10 in the UK and the top 20 in the US. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Horan stated his upcoming new album Flicker was inspired by classic rock acts, including Fleetwood Mac and The Eagles, "Whenever I would pick up a guitar, I would always naturally play chords like that, and finger pick a lot and play that folky kind of style." He also described the collection as having a "folk-with-pop feel to it."[30] Horan will embark on his worldwide tour Flicker Sessions 2017 in August.[31] Also in August, Horan revealed that he had contacted Maren Morris to contribute to his song "Seeing Blind".[32] Later the same month, he debuted a song titled "On My Own" at Dublin's Olympia Theatre.[33] On 15 September 2017, Horan released his third single from the album, "Too Much to Ask".[34] On 8 November 2017, Horan performed alongside Maren Morris at the 51st Country Music Association Awards[35].
Influences
In an interview with Digital Spy, Horan cited Michael Bublé as one of his biggest influences because they had similar life histories, as he was discovered by his aunt and the same thing happened to Bublé, except he was discovered by his father.[citation needed]
Horan has also stated that he is a "big, big swing fan", citing his favourite artists as Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Bublé.[36] Horan likes rock music and is a fan of The Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, Bon Jovi, and The Script.[36][37][38]
Personal life
Horan's parents have divorced and his mother has since remarried.[3] He has an older brother named Greg.[39] Horan is a supporter of Football League Championship side Derby County.[40]Horan is a huge fan of golf; he can be seen at numerous golf events and has participated in the BMW PGA Championship Pro-Am at Wentworth.[41][42] He also enjoys watching tennis and cricket occasionally; he has gone twice to the Australian Open and he's also friends with the player Novak Djokovic, and is a supporter of the Ireland cricket team.[43][44][45][46][47][48]
Horan enjoyed playing a number of sports while growing up, including golf, football, and Gaelic football.[49] In the summer of 2010, while playing football with friends, Horan injured his knee and was diagnosed with a floating kneecap.[49] The problem recurred several times over the next couple of years, including a 2013 incident where he dislocated his knee onstage during a concert in Antwerp, Belgium.[49][50] Horan came to the United States for major reconstructive surgery in January 2014, after the tour ended.[49][51] After the surgery, Horan was invited to do physical therapy with Chelsea by their manager, José Mourinho. Horan went through more than seven weeks of physical therapy with the members of the team and their physical therapist at their training ground in Surrey.[49]
Horan has involved himself in the sports world a number of times on social media, and on 8 April 2015, he caddied for professional golfer Rory McIlroy for the Par 3 contest prior to the 2015 Masters Tournament in Augusta, Georgia.[52] A video of Horan losing his balance during a televised interview with McIlroy circulated around the internet for several days following the tournament, causing Horan himself to tweet about the fall.[53][54]
In 2016, Horan and golf player Justin Rose created the "Horan and Rose Gala", a charity event in aid of Cancer Research UK Kids and Teens. The event was hosted by Kirsty Gallagher and Gaby Logan in London, with a dinner cooked by Jamie Oliver and a performance by Olly Murs on 29–30 May.[55] On 12 April, Rose posted a photo of him and Horan writing songs for the event.[56]
In April 2016, Horan was announced to be joining the Soccer Aid 2016 star line-up fundraiser for UNICEF as an assistant manager and player for the Rest of the World team.[57] His team will consist of Claudio Ranieri, Gordon Ramsay, Michael Sheen, Nicky Byrne, and Rickie Haywood Williams, among others. Horan's team will play against fellow bandmate Louis Tomlinson, who is playing for the England team.
Filmography
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2010 | The X Factor | Himself | Contestant; Series 7 |
2012 | iCarly | Guest role; (Season 6, Episode 2) | |
Saturday Night Live | Musical guest; (Season 37, Episode 18) | ||
2013 | One Direction: This Is Us | ||
Saturday Night Live | Musical guest; (Season 39, Episode 8) | ||
2014 | One Direction: Where We Are – The Concert Film | ||
Saturday Night Live | Musical guest; (Season 40, Episode 10) | ||
One Direction: The TV Special | |||
2017 | One Love Manchester | Himself |
Discography
- Flicker (2017)
Awards and nominations
Year | Award | Category | Nominee/work | Result | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2016 | BMI London Awards | Pop Award Songs | "Night Changes" | Won | [58] |
2017 | People's Choice Awards | Favorite Breakout Artist | Niall Horan | [59] | |
iHeartRadio Music Awards | Best Solo Breakout | Nominated | [60] | ||
Radio Disney Music Awards | Best Male Artist | Won | [61] | ||
iHeartRadio Much Music Video Awards | Fan Fave International Artist or Group | [62] | |||
Teen Choice Awards | Choice Song: Male Artist | "Slow Hands" | [63] | ||
Choice Summer Male Artist | Niall Horan | Nominated | [64] | ||
Telehit Awards | Video in English | "Slow Hands" | Won | [65] | |
BMI London Awards | Pop Award Songs | "This Town" | [66] | ||
American Music Awards | New Artist of the Year | Niall Horan | [67] | ||
2018 | The Global Awards | Best Song | "Slow Hands" | Pending | [68] |
Best Male | Niall Horan | Pending | |||
Best Pop | Pending |
Concert tours
See also
- List of awards and nominations received by One Direction
- List of Billboard Social 50 number-one artists
References
- ^ "11 Celeb Names You're Totally Pronouncing Wrong". Seventeen. 31 July 2017. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
- ^ "Niall Horan Biography". Hollywood Life. Retrieved 31 December 2015.
- ^ a b "Mums of One Direction stars reveal how the boys have grown into music sensations". Daily Record. Glasgow. 16 April 2012. Retrieved 11 May 2012.
- ^ John D. Buchanan. "Niall Horan Bio". microsoft. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
- ^ "Niall Auditions For The X Factor". Capital FM. Retrieved 31 December 2015.
- ^ "One Direction on UK". The Official Chart Company. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ "Mexico Airplay". Archived from the original on 19 July 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
{{cite web}}
: Unknown parameter|deadurl=
ignored (|url-status=
suggested) (help) - ^ "Chart Track Archive". GFK Chart Track. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ "More Than This on Charts". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ "One Thing on Charts". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ "Gotta Be You on Charts". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ "Up All Night - Live Concert DVD". One Direction Music. Archived from the original on 19 March 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
{{cite web}}
: Unknown parameter|dead-url=
ignored (|url-status=
suggested) (help) - ^ "One Direction prepare for 'Up All Night' Tour With Watford Concert". Capital FM. Archived from the original on 9 April 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
{{cite web}}
: Unknown parameter|dead-url=
ignored (|url-status=
suggested) (help) - ^ "Irish Albums Chart - Take Me Home". GFK Chart Track. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ "One Direction Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ "One Direction Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ "Australian Album Charts - One Direction". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ "One Direction Discography". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ "Chart Track Archive 5". GFK Chart Track. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ "Australian Charts - Kiss You". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ "One Direction Movie in 3D". Coming Soon. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ Matt Collar. "Take Me Home - One Direction". AllMusic. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ Kate Lucey. "NIALL HORAN DEBUTS ONE DIRECTION'S ONE WAY OR ANOTHER ON NICK GRIMSHAWS RADIO 1 SHOW - LISTEN". Sugarscape. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ Tim Nixon. "One Direction go One Way Or Another for Comic Relief 2013". The Sun. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
- ^ Rumor Mill (7 September 2016). "Niall In the Family". HITS Daily Double. United States: HITS Digital Ventures. Retrieved 8 September 2016.
- ^ Forrester, Katy (29 September 2016). "Niall Horan surprises fans by dropping his FIRST solo single This Town". Mirror.co.uk. Retrieved 17 December 2017.
- ^ "Niall Horan > UK Charts". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
- ^ Trust, Gary (3 January 2017). "Rae Sremmurd Returns to No. 1 on Hot 100, Migos Soars to Top 10". Billboard. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
- ^ "Niall Horan's Next Single 'Slow Hands' Has a Release Date". Billboard. 1 May 2017. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
- ^ "Niall Horan gets funky on new track, 'Slow Hands'". Entertainment Weekly. 4 May 2017. Retrieved 29 May 2017.
- ^ Reed, Ryan (10 July 2017). "Niall Horan Plots Intimate 'Flicker Sessions 2017' World Tour". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 10 July 2017.
- ^ Halperin, Shirley (9 August 2017). "Niall Horan Debuts Duet With Maren Morris, Sam Smith Reveals New Album Details at Capitol Congress". Variety. Retrieved 10 August 2017.
- ^ "Niall Horan unveils debut album at Olympia show". RTÉ.ie. 29 August 2017. Retrieved 30 August 2017.
- ^ Lars, Brandle (15 September 2017). "Niall Horan Drops New Single 'Too Much to Ask': Listen". Billboard. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
- ^ "Niall Horan to Perform With Maren Morris at CMA Awards on Nov. 8". Billboard.com. Retrieved 17 December 2017.
- ^ a b "Niall Interview (VEVO LIFT): Brought to you by McDonald's". YouTube. 16 March 2012. Retrieved 27 April 2012.
- ^ Leah Collins (12 March 2012). "One Direction: X Factor boy band on what sets them apart". National Post. Canada: Postmedia Network Inc. Retrieved 17 March 2012.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Levine, Nick. "One Direction's Niall working on 'folk-pop' album inspired by Fleetwood Mac, The Eagles". NME. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
- ^ Lisa McGarry (6 November 2010). "X Factor 2010: Niall Horan's brother says One Direction get along well". Unreality TV. Unrealitytv Limited. Archived from the original on 18 March 2012. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
{{cite news}}
: Unknown parameter|deadurl=
ignored (|url-status=
suggested) (help) - ^ Tyler, Kelly. "Derby County fan and One Direction star Niall Horan to hold charity football challenge". Derby Telegraph. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
- ^ Jackson, Keith. "Niall Horan walks and talks with Wayne Riley during the BMW PGA pro-am". Sky Sports. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
- ^ "Niall Horan and Justin Rose team up for the Genesis Open Pro-Am". Sky Sports. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
- ^ Martin, Laura. "New look for 1D Niall as he cheers on Novak Djokovic in Australian Open final". mirror. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
- ^ "Niall Horan returns for Australian Open final". Mail Online. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
- ^ "Australian Open champ Djokovic celebrates with One Direction's Horan". Mail Online. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
- ^ Niall Horan Enjoys A Cricket Match In Melbourne beautifulballad.org. Retrieved 22 January 2016.
- ^ Niall Horan joins growing chorus of celebrities #BackingGreen Cricket Ireland. Retrieved 22 January 2016.
- ^ We'd like to welcome back @NiallOfficial to the @MCG for his second @StarsBBL match Melbourne Stars. Retrieved 22 January 2016.
- ^ a b c d e Direction, One (2014). Who We Are: Our Autobiography. London: Harper Collins. pp. 86–145. ISBN 978-0-00-757731-6.
- ^ "One Direction Antwerp 1-5-13 Niall and Louis DANCE COMPETITION (Niall hurts his knee)". YouTube. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
{{cite web}}
: Cite has empty unknown parameters:|1=
and|2=
(help) - ^ "One Direction's Niall Horan Has Major Knee Surgery". E! Online. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
- ^ "Rory McIlroy leans on Niall Horan for par threes but his one direction is up". the Guardian. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
- ^ "Watch Niall Horan Fall Over While Working as a Golf Caddy | Billboard". Billboard. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
- ^ "Niall Horan Hilariously Falling Over On A Golf Course Will Make Your Day". BuzzFeed. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
- ^ "Niall Horan's hosting a charity gala with golfer fella Justin Rose". Sugarscape. 21 March 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
- ^ Alex Bywater. "One Direction star Niall Horan writes song with golf ace Justin Rose as duo enjoy charity songwriting session". Instagram. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
- ^ "One Direction's Niall Horan signs up for Soccer Aid 2016 | Press Releases | UNICEF UK". www.unicef.org.uk. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
- ^ "Sting and Top Songwriters Honored at 2016 BMI London Awards". BMI. 10 October 2016.
- ^ "People's Choice Awards 2017: Full List Of Nominees". People's Choice. 15 November 2016. Retrieved 19 November 2016.
- ^ Thorpe, Isha (5 March 2017). "Here's The Complete List Of #iHeartAwards Winners". iHeartRadio. Retrieved 5 March 2017.
- ^ "2017 RDMA Winners". Radio Disney. 29 April 2017. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
- ^ "MMVAs 2017: A list of the winners". CTV News. 19 June 2017. Retrieved 19 June 2017.
{{cite web}}
: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|1=
(help) - ^ "Teen Choice Awards". Teen Choice. Retrieved 19 June 2017.
{{cite news}}
: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|work=
(help) - ^ "Second and Final Weave of "Teen Choice 2017" Nominees Announced". Teen Choice. 13 July 2017. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
{{cite news}}
: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|work=
(help) - ^ "¡Ellos son los ganadores a los Premios Telehit 2017!". Telehit (in Spanish).
- ^ "James Bay, Ed Sheeran and Zayn up for Song Of The Year at BMI London Awards". Music Week. 5 October 2017. Retrieved 10 December 2017.
- ^ "Here Is the Full List of 2017 AMAs Nominations". Billboard. 12 October 2017. Retrieved 9 November 2017.
- ^ "The Global Awards". Global. 23 December 2017.
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)