That's What Makes You Beautiful: One Direction and Directioners
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| In order: Liam Payne, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan, and Harry Styles sitting together at an award show (10) |
From individual competitors to the largest boyband in the world, One Direction has attracted the love and adoration of fans. One Direction originally had five members: Harry Styles, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan, and Zayn Malik. The band got their start on Britain's popular show X-Factor where the five boys auditioned as solo artists. After being cut in the early rounds of X-Factor boot camp, the judges offered the boys an opportunity to move forward in the competition, but only if they joined together (5). This decision ultimately became life-changing for each member as their fame grew exponentially in a few years.
One Direction came in 3rd place in the X-Factor competition, but were signed to a management company owned by Simon Cowell, one of the judges on the show (2). In early 2015, Zayn Malik left the group due to personal reasons. The remaining four members decided to take a hiatus in early 2016 and have yet to return as a group.
However, even though the band has been exploring their individual careers for the past several years, their fandom has not dwindled. In fact, with the popularity of the members' solo careers in recent years, the fandom has grown larger than ever.
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| Fans created a display in the crowd at One Direction's Milan concert in 2014 (10) |
Fans of One Direction call themselves Directioners, although there are many different labels within the fandom based on many factors such as how long someone has been a fan and favorite members. Directioners engage with the band in several ways, but mostly through supporting each member via social medias and within the fandom. This support has extended past the constraints of the band itself and into the solo careers that they are currently pursuing. Along with general support of the members, Directioners engage among the fandom by creating fanfictions, fan art, and One Direction communities.
Interactions with the Band Members
Fanfiction
As with many fandoms, Directioners also create stories revolving around their band members. Many inside jokes and fan labels that circulate in the fandom are derived from different fanfictions. Most fanfiction often stays within the fandom, however, a One Direction fanfiction has recently entered popular culture in the form of best-selling books and movies. Originally written on Wattpad by Anna Todd, the fanfiction is based on a fictional version of band member Harry Styles (6). The first book, titled After, sold 10 million copies, prompting Todd to extend the story with sequels. In 2019, the book series extended its popularity into the film industry with the release of the title film (6). Since then, there has been another film released in the series, and more to come.
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| Fan manipulation of the original 5 members, made to appear as though the members are posing for a group photo, rather than being 5 separate photos (10) |
Along with fanfiction, fans also create other art in reference to their favorite band. With the influence of social media, fans are able to access their creative sides through acting, video and image manipulation, and fashion design. On social media such as TikTok and Instagram, fans create video manipulations called "manips," "imagines," and "point of views" that often involve the fan acting alongside video clips of the band members (1). Currently, a popular manip throughout the fandom is photoshopping images of the members in their solo careers together again, as if the members were still acting as a band. Other fans create art in the form of whole band or individual member clothing, like sweatshirts, using platforms such as Etsy and TikTok to promote their designs (7).
Band Years vs. Solo Careers
The fandom originally started to rise during the years that the band was active; however, because the members have been individual artists for many years, there are new Directioners joining post-band years. This has broken the fandom into two main categories called OT5 and OT4 (8). Branching from OTP, which stands for "one true pairing," the fans identify their years in the fandom by recognizing the original 5 members (one true 5) or the remaining 4 members (one true 4) (8).
The fans from the "band years" often can be identified by their level of knowledge of inside jokes and early One Direction memories, such as the video diaries series. Fans can test their knowledge through various quizzes and general interactions within the fandom (3). Because of the members' solo career, fans have popped up as originally enjoying one member's music and eventually finding One Direction's music, thus becoming Directioners.
Breaking Records
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| Tweets from band member Harry Styles on the band's 10 year anniversary, referencing the fans (10) |
Regardless of what stage of the fandom a fan joins during, it is undeniable that One Direction is the largest boyband accompanied with the largest fandom. The British-Irish band has broken numerous records and consequently so have their fans. According to the Guiness World Records, One Direction "has held records as the most followed band on Instagram and Twitter, most subscribed band on YouTube, and [they] became the first UK group to reach number one in the USA on their debut album" (9). These accomplishments, among others, are also accomplishments of the fandom.
Because of their overwhelming numbers and love for the band, Directioners have become a curiosity for some researchers. Several scholarly articles have been written analyzing the behaviors of fans in connection to the band members, like this one, which investigates the fandom's inner workings.
To prove that the One Direction fandom is still as active even after five years post-hiatus, on the 10 year anniversary in 2020, One Direction's music had roughly 55 million global streams; Spotify saw One Direction's largest streaming day ever on this anniversary as the band became the most-streamed artist globally with over 47 million listens (9). Obviously, the fandom's undying dedication to the band continues to prove again and again that the One Direction fans are alive and well.
Connect to your inner Directioner and watch this music video of the band's single "History" that emotionally shows memories of their past:
Citations:
(1) Agrawal, Shivani. “Fangirl Power: How One Woman Turned The Tables On Fandom Stereotypes.” UnitedByPop, 3 Feb. 2018, www.unitedbypop.com/music/fandoms/power-one-direction-fandom/.
(2) Brittanica. “One Direction.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., www.britannica.com/topic/One-Direction.
(3) Buzzfeed. “Directioners.” BuzzFeed, www.buzzfeed.com/tag/directioners.
(4) Lipshutz, Jason. “One Direction Announces Massive '1D Day' Live Stream.” Billboard, 2 Oct. 2013, www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop-shop/5740757/one-direction-announces-massive-1d-day-live-stream#:~:text=Click%20to%20copy-,One%20Direction,album%2C%20%22Midnight%20Memories.%22.
(5) “One Direction.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 3 Mar. 2021, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Direction.
(6) Pham, Jason. “How Anna Todd's Harry Styles Fanfiction Became a Bestselling Book-& Now a Movie.” StyleCaster, StyleCaster, 12 Apr. 2019, stylecaster.com/after-anna-todd-harry-styles-fanfiction/.
(7) Staff, MTV News. “Harry Styles Online Fan Merch Is Thriving, As Long As The Postal Service Is.” MTV News, 3 Sept. 2020, www.mtv.com/news/3169916/harry-styles-fan-merch-tiktok-postal-service/.
(8) thisdayin1Dhistory. “WhatDoesOT5andOT4Mean.” Tumblr, 10 Nov. 2016, thisdayin1dhistory.tumblr.com/post/152998962950/what-does-like-ot4-or-ot5-mean.
(9) V., Sirena. “One Direction Fans Achieve Staggering Anniversary Week Statistics.” United By Pop, 29 July 2020, www.unitedbypop.com/music/fandoms/one-direction-anniversary-week-statistics/.
(10) All images sources via Google Images
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