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Why Louis Tomlinson Can "Never Accept" Liam Payne's Death One Year After Passing
Louis Tomlinson doesn't see the lyrical beauty in "What Makes You Beautiful."
In fact, he revealed the 2011 hit that launched One Direction into stardom was “always, always, always” his least favorite song to perform.
“Two reasons on that: It’s definitely our most pop and most bubble gum pop moment,” Louis explained during an interview with Scott Mills on BBC Radio 2 on March 18. “But also performing that always felt so eggy.”
The 34-year-old explained that having to perform the song live beside bandmates Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Harry Styles and the late Liam Payne was especially cringey because he was the oldest member of the group.
“At the time, I was 18 and it wasn’t the coolest thing to be in a boy band,” he shared, “and then we got really big, so then it was cool. But for the first couple of years it wasn’t really like that.”
"So, you know, singing, ‘Baby, you light up my world like nobody else,’ honestly, it wouldn’t be out of place in a Disney film,” he continued. “So, it felt a little corny."
That being said, Louis—who went on to pursue a solo career after One Direction disbanded in 2016—recognizes he wouldn’t be where it is today without the band’s catchy lead single.
“I’m not undermining the journey, ‘cause obviously it worked out great,” the “Lemonade” singer explained. “It was a great song, and I probably have my whole career to thank for it, so there you go.”
Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images for Rays of Sunshine
Louis also joked that “Up All Night”—the title track off their debut album—is also on the bottom of his favorites list. As the X Factor alum put it, “That was a bad song.”
But the “Walls” hitmaker does have a One Direction song that he enjoys performing live.
"My favorite One Direction song as it is, on record, is probably ‘Story of My Life.’ I think that was a real moment," he said of the 2013 song off the band's third album Midnight Memories. “That’s not the kind of record you expect from a band like One Direction, it has a little bit more to it.”
Karwai Tang/WireImage
“That was kind of a turning point for us," he continued. "I remember feeling really proud that that wasn’t the kind of song that you could ever dance to. There was definitely a kind of mold of boy bands before then, and I think that was a song that really helped us kind of break out of that."
From breaking onto the music scene with their lead single to traveling the world together as one of the best-selling boy bands in history, One Direction had plenty of memorable moments during their time together. Keep reading for more…
NBC / Contributor / GETTY IMAGES
They've Got the X Factor
Despite winning over audiences around the world, the band finished in third place behind Rebecca Ferguson and Matt Cardle in 2010.
FOX / Contributor / GETTY IMAGES
Live From New York
The U.K. band made their Saturday Night Live debut in 2012 with an electric performance of their single "One Thing."
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Winning Big at the 2013 VMAs
The band took home the coveted moonman trophy for Best Song of the Summer for their song "Best Song Ever."
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Hitting the Big Screen
The band gave fans a behind-the-scenes look at live on the road of their This Is Us Tour with their concert documentary movie This Is Us.
Yui Mok - WPA Pool /Getty Images
Music Royalty
While attending the Royal Variety Performance in November 2014, the band met Prince William and Kate Middleton.
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Where They Are
The band's Where We Are Tour was the highest-grossing tour of 2014, beating out Justin Timberlake, The Rolling Stones, Katy Perry as well as Beyoncé and Jay-Z's tours that year.
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One Direction Minus One
In March 2015, Malik announced that he was leaving the band to launch his solo career.
Mike Windle/Getty Images for iHeartMedia
End of an Era
After releasing 2015's Made in the A.M. as a foursome, Styles, Payne, Horan and Tomlinson announced that One Direction would take an indefinite hiatus.
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Fatherhood
Tomlinson became a father to his son Freddie Reign in 2016. One year later, Payne welcomed his son Bear Grey with ex Cheryl Cole.
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Reunion?
In 2020, fans suspected that a reunion of sorts was underway when Styles, Payne, Tomlinson and Horan all started following Malik on X—then known as Twitter—again.
Further fueling reunion rumors, Payne told The Sun at the time, "We've got a 10-year anniversary coming up so we've all been speaking together a lot over the last few weeks which has been really nice."
Instagram/Zayn Malik
Another 1D Baby
Malik and his then-girlfriend Gigi Hadid welcomed daughter Khai in September 2020.
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Friends First
Payne attended the London premiere of Tomlinson's 2023 documentary All of Those Voices.
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