I’ve talked about many people I stan in this newsletter, but I don’t think I ride for any of them in the way I do for Niall Horan. He was my favorite One Direction member. I liked that he plays guitar, is a Virgo, and has a playful personality. He also just released a brand new album!
When the boyband went on hiatus, I was looking forward to hearing his solo music the most. When his debut single “This Town” dropped, I was in the middle of my comparative world literature class in college, and couldn’t put my wired earbuds in fast enough when it ended at 12:15 p.m.
His first solo album, Flicker, was full of folk-rock bops and ruminative guitar ballads. In March 2020, he released his second album, Heartbreak Weather. The name was fitting because not only was it mostly about the end of his relationship with Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse actress Hailee Steinfeld, but because COVID-19 happened. The tour he scheduled that spring was canceled (including my fourth row tickets, RIP), and he couldn’t even promote the project.
Horan just released The Show, his highly-anticipated third album. I watched his interview with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe a few hours before it was released, and I’m paraphrasing, but Horan mentioned this album feeling more mature than the past two. After listening, I agree! Flicker was what a lot of people expected from him, and Heartbreak Weather was his venture into the pop world. I can hear all his musical influences on The Show; The Eagles, Bob Dylan, and more.
You can tell Horan is in love… like he’s down bad. On “If You Leave Me,” he sings: “If you leave me / Hope you know that you’re sentencing me / To a life on my knees / I don’t know who I would be.” He literally says she could start a cult, and he would follow her until there’s no tomorrow. I appreciate the way he writes about how his love interests make him feel. Like, it’s almost codependent, but it’s endearing and charming!
I went to my local record store to pick up a copy of The Show on Friday, and was lucky enough to snag the last one with a signed polaroid tucked inside the sleeve. I’m also seeing Horan on tour next July at The Forum, and I’m already counting down the days to when I can hear him perform these new songs live.
Apologies for my own hiatus!! Work has been picking up a bit! I’m now leading mitú’s JEFAS series, where I interview Latina entrepreneurs. New profiles go live every Thursday, and I’ve been enjoying writing them and learning from the women. I’m lowkey rebranding handle with care, and I want to try making it more personal. That means focusing on quality over quantity, so I’m no longer promising weekly newsletters. Also, time is precious because I am mother to this lil baby now:
Okay, thank you for reading! Friendly reminder that I’m on Twitter if you want to hmu. Byeeeee!