Niall Horan
Niall James Horan (/ˈnaɪəl ˈhɔːrən/ NY-uhl HOR-ruhn;[1][2] born 13 September 1993) is an Irish singer-songwriter. He rose to prominence as a member of the boy band One Direction, formed in 2010 on the singing competition The X Factor. The group released five albums and went on to become one of the best-selling boy bands of all time.
This article is about the singer. For the priest, see Neil Horan. For the rugby union player, see Niall Hogan.
Niall Horan
- Singer
- songwriter
2010–present
- Vocals
- guitar
- piano
Following the band's hiatus in 2016, Horan signed a recording deal as a solo artist with Capitol Records and has since released three albums: Flicker (2017), Heartbreak Weather (2020) and The Show (2023). Flicker debuted at number one in Ireland and the US, and reached the top three in Australia and the UK. The album's first two singles, "This Town" and "Slow Hands", reached the top twenty in several countries. Heartbreak Weather was released in March 2020, and debuted at number one in the UK, Ireland and Mexico, and at number four in the US.[3]
Horan's third studio album, titled The Show, was released in June 2023.[4] It was preceded by the singles "Heaven" and "Meltdown", which were released in February and April 2023, respectively.[5]
Early life
Horan was born on 13 September 1993 in Mullingar, Westmeath, Ireland.[6] He has an older brother, Greg, who was born in 1987.[7] His parents, Bobby Horan and Maura Gallagher (née Nolan),[8] divorced when he was five years old, so he and his brother lived with their mother for a year. After spending a year apart from their father, they later decided to move in with him.[9] He had asthma as a child.[10]
Horan's brother received a guitar for his 15th birthday which he only used once and then it "sat around for a while" until Horan himself picked it up.[11] Horan, then aged 11, taught himself how to play the guitar by following YouTube tutorials. His aunt discovered his abilities one day when she was in the car with Horan as he started singing, and she had initially thought that the radio was on.[12] As a teenager, he performed at the Mullingar Arts Centre during a fundraiser for the local football team, the Shamrocks. He also bagged a support slot with former X Factor contestant Lloyd Daniels at the Academy club in Dublin.[13]
Career
2010–2015: The X Factor and One Direction
In 2010, at sixteen years old, Horan auditioned for the seventh series of The X Factor in Dublin.[14] 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 that he needed some time to grow. Simon Cowell voted to let him through, Cole said no, Walsh said yes, and Perry decided to vote yes. Horan was then put through to bootcamp. At bootcamp, he sang "Champagne Supernova", but failed to qualify for the category. After a suggestion from guest judge Nicole Scherzinger, Horan was put in a group with four boys who also failed to move on in the competition, and since they were too good to let go, the judges decided to agree with Scherzinger. Horan 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. Within the first four weeks of the live shows, they were Cowell's last act in the competition. They finished in 3rd place, behind runner-up Rebecca Ferguson and winner Matt Cardle.
Other ventures
In 2016, Horan and Mark McDonnell founded Modest Golf, a golf management company.[74]
In early 2023, Horan became one of the coaches on the 23rd season of The Voice.[75][76][77] In May 2023, it was announced that Horan would return for the 24th season, which premiered in late 2023.[78][79] On 23 May 2023, Gina Miles, a member of Horan's team, won The Voice, making Horan the winning coach on his first season.[80] On 19 December 2023, Huntley, also a member from Horan's team, won the 24th season, making Horan the winning coach for the second consecutive time.[81]
Artistry
Horan's music style has been categorized as soft rock,[82][83][84][85] pop,[86][87] and pop rock,[88] while also having elements of country[89] and folk.[90] His tenor voice has been described as "sweet, high, [and] slightly grainy."[13] Horan grew up listening to rock bands like the Eagles and Fleetwood Mac,[91] and crooners including Rat Pack members Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra.[92] He is also inspired by singer-songwriters such as Damien Rice, Taylor Swift[93] and Bruce Springsteen.[94]
Personal life
Horan is Catholic and is the godfather of his nephew.[95]
Horan enjoyed playing a number of sports while growing up, including golf, football, and Gaelic football.[96] He supports English association football team Derby County.[97] In the summer of 2010, while playing football with friends, he injured his knee and was diagnosed with a floating kneecap.[96] 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.[96][98] Horan went to the United States for major reconstructive surgery in January 2014, after the tour ended.[96][99] After the surgery, he 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.[96]
In April 2018, Horan said he had mild OCD and anxiety.[100][101] Horan dated American actress/singer Hailee Steinfeld from late 2017 to 2018.[102] Horan began dating account manager Amelia Woolley in 2020.[103] He splits his time between Los Angeles and South London.[104][105]
Horan is colourblind and has difficulty differentiating between orange and red, green and yellow, and shades of blue and purple.[106]
