One Direction: Who We Are: Our Official Autobiography

  From a really early age my dad would always take me to football matches in England. I think I was only four when I went to my first game. So I got used to travelling – which is helpful in this job! Really early on Saturday mornings he’d be like, ‘Wake up, Niall. We’ve got to be on the boat from Dublin at five this morning!’ So I’d stumble out of bed and we’d somehow make the ferry to Holyhead, then jump on the train to Llandudno, across to Crewe, and catch the train from Crewe to Derby. I loved that journey and going to watch football with my dad. Looking back, I do think all that travelling at such a young age has helped me cope with the massive amount of flying and driving we do in the band.

  Teeth all over the place in my last official primary-school photo.

  Of course, the most obvious aspect of my childhood that has influenced my role in the band is my lifelong love of music. Funnily enough, there isn’t really much musical history in my family – my parents didn’t perform or have amateur singing careers, but they were really big music fans. I vividly remember two pivotal gigs that hugely influenced me – both by The Eagles. I went to see them twice before I was even ten. That was a pretty big deal for me, and I said, ‘Dad, that was just the best night ever. I want to be able to sing like that!’ The first concert I ever went to was McFly, then my second was The Eagles. Two totally different ends of the spectrum.

  After that I was hooked, and I just wanted to get up on stage. Whether it was the choir or local productions like Oliver!, talent shows or busking – anything to do with performing – I just wanted to get up there and perform, even though I was crapping myself with nerves. I had a phase of wanting to do sound engineering too, front of house at venues. I went to so many gigs ’cos my dad’s such a big music fan. I was always fascinated by how the sound was mixed, even though I didn’t have a clue how they actually did it. I saw music as a way to broaden my horizons too – it seemed like it was offering up a chance to travel and see the world. So I guess you could look back on all of these parts of my childhood and say they either influenced my decisions to want to get into a band later in life or helped me once I joined One Direction.

  My childhood was actually cut short by The X Factor because after One Direction took off I didn’t even get the chance to finish my exams. I once said that for the first audition, ‘I packed up everything in my life in a bag.’ That’s completely true. But what I didn’t realise at the time when I was stuffing clothes into my little suitcase was that, pretty much, I was leaving home for good. After One Direction got put together, I was just shuttling between Ireland and England for the rest of the show. Then it was Judges’ Houses and on to the live finals, after which I went home one more time, re-packed the suitcase ... and I haven’t lived in Ireland since. It was a case of grabbing some clothes, slinging my guitar over my shoulder and off I went.

  I think one year I was home for 26 days in total – not all at the same time! Let’s be clear, though. I’m not complaining. I never really get homesick – I don’t know what it is. I miss my family and friends really badly sometimes, but luckily I’ve got my cousin here in London and I always have people around me, especially ’cos all of us in the band live near each other. So I can always have a bit of a laugh. If I’m feeling down I can pretty quickly find someone to have a chat with and a bit of banter. I tend to go around annoying people, just chatting away. Plus the best way to ease any homesickness is just to think of One Direction – I’m mad into this band.

  Moving to a big city wasn’t such a shock for me. My mum obviously asked me if I felt all right about the move and I was like, ‘Yeah, I’ll be grand. I can’t wait!’ Even though I was coming from a town where everyone knows each other, hands down starting from scratch in London wasn’t a problem. I’d been there quite a few times to watch football with Dad and I was ready for the challenge. I was so excited too. How could I not be?

  I have extremely fond memories of my childhood – playing and messing about with my mates. It was pretty idyllic.

  This wasn’t exactly what I had in mind when I asked for ‘a super-fast road bike’.

  By the time I got home, this fish had grown to twice the size – in my mind, at least.

  With my brother Greg and Mum, Maura.

  Messing about with guitar and vocals, something I just always felt comfortable doing. My first actual guitar arrived not long after . . . (cont. over the page...)

  While I settled into London easily enough, the minute I moved over it was ‘Lights, camera, action!’ every Saturday on the biggest show in the country. That took some getting used to! Nothing can prepare you for The X Factor. You’re straight in there, cameras in your face pretty much 24/7. BANG! From the minute you wake up to the minute you go to sleep, there are studios, rehearsals, interviews, rushing around all over the place during the week, then Saturday’s show ... BOOM! By Sunday you’re wrecked, and then it just starts all over again. What a buzz, though!

  I remember very clearly the first day after The X Factor finished. Along with Matt Cardle and Rebecca Ferguson, we were the last people in a ten-bedroom house – this mad, messy, huge house. None of us boys in the band had packed but we had to be out of the house by 11am. Then we got a rap on the door. It was our new tour manager, Paul, this big Irish fella who comes walking into the room and goes, ‘Right, lads. I’m Paul. You’ve got half an hour to get packed!’

  We went to the K West Hotel in Shepherd’s Bush and had some lunch. We were all really excited but at the same time we were like, ‘What’s gonna happen next? Where are we going today? What are we going to do?’ How could we tell? We didn’t even have a record deal, although it had kinda been suggested to us that we might be offered one.

  Then we found out that Zayn’s granddad had died. Talk about contrast. What a shame for Zayn. So we all jumped into a car and drove up to Bradford to go to his granddad’s funeral. Zayn was brilliant. Once he’d looked after his family situation he just snapped back into being with the band. I don’t know how he did it. Then we came back down to London and went into the Sony offices a couple of days later. We walked in, and they sat us down in this boardroom and said they wanted to sign us. I was just sitting there thinking, This is sick!

  It was really noticeable how all of us got on so quickly. We always had a good laugh, and the relationship between the five lads in the band just kinda happened. We spent every single day with each other and never really fell out. Sure, there were a couple of niggles here and there – but that’s bound to happen. Our first PA tour of small clubs was a crucial part of us starting to become a unit, driving up and down the country in a small tour bus, performing all these club gigs, a couple of bar mitzvahs, all that. It was mainly great reactions, but we played a dodgy club in Leeds one night and they started throwing things and eventually booed us off stage!

  Luckily, that was the exception and it all took off from there. The first six months of One Direction was just nuts. As soon as we got to venues, TV studios or radio stations, people would say, ‘There’s loads of girls by the gate, a few hundred maybe.’ So we’d go out, chat with them and try to meet as many as possible. In a pretty short space of time, though, the numbers grew and grew, and people started saying, ‘There’s a few thousand ...’

  I was a keen sportsman as a kid – golf, football and Gaelic football – fortunately at this point I didn’t have a crocked knee! (cont. over the page...)

  When we were on The X Factor we all thought it was hard work – and it was, to be fair. But as soon as we left the show and got out there on our own, the work-rate just went mad, totally crazy. We were being shepherded around all over the place and everyone wanted a bit of us. I don’t mind admitting that a part of me was thinking, Right, you have got six months to do as much as you can. Chances are it’s all gonna be over after that. I think that was probably a realistic way to be, and it certainly meant I never slacked off or took my opportunity for granted. Obviously we’ve managed to last a little longer than six months and we’ve had a good bit of success, but back t
hen we didn’t know if each gig might be our last. We just thought we had nothing to lose because no one knew what to expect from us. At that stage we were like, ‘Let’s have a bit of a laugh, let’s make this as good as we can!’ Looking back, those were the days! Great craic, like!

  My excitement ramped up when we flew to LA and then Sweden for the début album recording sessions. That was amazing. I’d been to New York and Boston before, but Zayn had only ever been on a plane once, for Judges’ Houses, and we’d told him all sorts, like, ‘The plane is gonna loop the loop and do all these mad stunts, Zayn!’ He was freaking out, it was hilarious! When we arrived at LAX airport we were shocked to see a few fans, but we kinda dismissed it. We were like, ‘Nah, that can’t be ...’ We were all buzzing, enjoying the weather, going in and out the studios, the most relaxed it’s ever been. In LA they didn’t start till 4pm so we sat outside by the pool for hours. It was great.

  I was so naïve to the whole studio world. We’d been in a studio very briefly for The X Factor winner’s single session but that was so short. Now we were in LA for our own album sessions it was literally like, ‘So, lads, what are these headphones for?’ The studio mixing desk just looked like a table of gibberish to me. We were all so in awe of the producers too, they seemed to know so much and have written so many hit songs. The fact that you don’t know the producers either is a bit weird, and singing in front of them felt a little bit like auditioning for The X Factor again. I was crapping myself and was saying to the lads, ‘I hope they think what I’m doing is OK. These guys have recorded pretty much everyone who’s anyone!’ I wouldn’t say I was the best singer in the world back then! In retrospect it was pretty straightforward actually – we were told, ‘Go in and sing this line, then come out until later when you will sing this next line ...’

  We didn’t have a clue, to be fair, and I’m kinda happy that we were directed back then because otherwise we wouldn’t have had ‘What Makes You Beautiful’ and the great album that we did. We had good people around us who’d been in the industry for years and knew exactly what they were doing. We were still kids, plus we were super busy promoting and doing PAs and gigs, so we wouldn’t have had the time to write songs even if we’d had the opportunity. That first album was so crucial as well, so it would’ve been too risky to let us loose with loads of writing. Everyone was waiting to see what we were gonna do now that we were off the show, what kind of music we were gonna make and how we’d sound.

  Our horizons were soon to broaden too, as we had other overseas studios booked for our first recording sessions. The very early sessions in Sweden were really cool. On the first day in the studio we went for lunch and on our way back there were these two Swedish girls standing by the studio entrance. We actually just walked straight past them because we didn’t realise they were there to see us. They shouted out to us, ‘Do you mind if we get your autographs and a few photos, please?’ We were obviously like, ‘Of course, no bother!’ but at the same time we were like, ‘Where have you guys come from?’ and we found out they’d taken a long train journey through most of Sweden to get there. We were just gobsmacked. That was our first taste of fans outside the UK.

  On our first day recording in Sweden there were literally just those two fans outside, but as each day went by there were more and more girls waiting to meet us, and by the end of that week the entire road outside the studio was closed off because there were hundreds of fans everywhere. It was mayhem.

  Then the chaos and crazy interest in the band started to spread all over Europe. The record label would sort out days for fans to get wristbands and come in, and we’d sing a few songs and maybe do a signing. It was always mental. We’d never seen anything like it in our lives.

  As you know, our first single didn’t come out till the September after The X Factor. In the nine months before that we basically slogged it out in the back of a Mercedes van, in and out of hotels, the X Factor tour, time in studios, radio stations, video shoots and doing photo shoots. We brought out a book, did a load of signings, and we must have done every teen magazine in the world. When it was apparent that we were becoming big in Europe – our fans are amazing! – we had to start doing European promo too. The band’s horizon seemed to be getting bigger and bigger every day. Sitting here looking back, it’s actually hard to think of everything that went on. It’s so difficult to remember, it was all such a blur.

  I know our début single might seem like an age ago, but I do remember at the time that people were impressed. There was a feeling that it was a really good-quality pop song and that we’d made a great start. Obviously the Number 1 spot was a crazy start to our career, but to be honest we were working so hard we only briefly celebrated it, quick pat on the back like, and then BANG!, on to the next thing. It was relentless. I was so excited every day, and those were amazing times. I turned 18 in that September, and around that period we played a gig to a really bad audience, a supermarket buying team who were totally disinterested. What a way to reach that milestone!

  After the début single came out the band just went through the roof. Whatever our definition of crazy had been before was now completely rewritten – it moved on to a whole other level. We never really got time to wipe our arse after that.

  I’ve tried to analyse why One Direction went so completely mental. I like to think that if it was just about the music, and if no other factors were involved, we’d still be a popular band with a great fanbase, because in my opinion we’ve made some great songs. But I’m also realistic and I know it’s not just about the music – there’s marketing, social media, record-label schedules – so many things you can’t possibly be aware of before you first get involved in a band.

  There’s no doubt that our fans had a huge part to play in our early success. Specifically, our presence on social media was key. The fans took to that so well and it just created this colossal word of mouth about One Direction that was like a wildfire spreading around the globe. I think they knew then – and still do now – that our own accounts are genuine. They know that what we are saying is our own thoughts, our own words. No managers text me to say, ‘You need to tweet something today, Niall ...’ I just do it all of my own accord. I think that created a real intimacy with the fans from day one that they appreciated and enjoyed, so once they got involved too the effect was just unbelievable. I think it’s hard to put your finger on the exact reasons for those early months when the band blew up, but whatever they were, something crazy was happening with One Direction. It wasn’t so much like being inside a bubble as being blown off the floor by a whirlwind.

  Our first album, Up All Night, was a good pop record, in my opinion. OK, I might not play it much these days but then I think a lot of artists would probably say that about their earliest work, if they were being totally honest. As I’ve said, we didn’t get overly involved in the writing but we still felt a personal connection with the record, and going out there to perform it was such a buzz. When it went into the UK charts at Number 2 and even to Number 1 in 17 countries, I just couldn’t believe what was happening. I knew we were working hard, I knew there was a buzz around the band that was perhaps quite infectious, I knew the fans were just out of this world helping us, but it was still a big shock to me. I thought, Maybe this is going to last more than six months after all.

  I think that it was the early PAs and then the headline tour for the first album that really cemented One Direction together as five mates on this mad quest around the world. That’s when the chemistry really started. We’d had that week at Harry’s step-dad’s bungalow, which had helped a lot, but the first PA tour really fuelled that relationship between us all too. We’ve had the same bus driver for all these years, a Scouse fella called Don, and he was there on that first tour. In fact we’ve kept quite a few of the same crew all the way along this crazy journey.

  The first gig ever on our own was in Watford Coliseum, which is like the size of a small bedroom – it’s a modest town hall, basically. The crowd reaction was
just ridiculous, all a bit mad. I remember that show really clearly, as well as saying to the lads during the gig, ‘This place is mad! The fans are going nuts!’ We were going round doing these gigs, sleeping on the same tour bus and being together every day of the week. We were lads in our late teens and I was like, ‘Lads, this is the best time of our lives!’ How could it not be?

  One Direction just seemed to scale up so quickly. We’d been shocked when we found out we were popular round those PA club nights in the UK, then we’d been even more amazed that we already had a following in Europe. Then, weirdest of all, we went to the States – pretty much as five lads just having a laugh and seeing where it took us – and the whole thing just completely blew up.

  To be fair, we didn’t actually have many expectations when we flew out for the first US promo trip. Yes, we knew it was a big deal to go over there, but you just don’t expect success. Why would you? You hear of so many bands going out there and trying so hard but ultimately failing. The way we looked at it was, ‘Let’s just go out there, have a bit of fun, be ourselves, work hard, do every promo we can do, see what happens ...’ Back then we only had one security guy – Paul again! – who used to come everywhere with us. We started off not expecting anything, just us five and Paul in a small van, everywhere we went.

  It’s hard to pinpoint any single moment during the first US promo trip when I realised something ridiculous was going on. The Big Time Rush tour was a crazy time when we just couldn’t comprehend how all these American fans were singing every word of every song back at us. We’d often be sitting in the back of the bus after a show and everyone would be just looking a bit dazed, and then one of the lads would say, ‘What the hell is going on here?’ I kept thinking to myself, I could be back at school now and yet here I am on tour in the States.