Niall Horan

Niall James Horan (ˈnaɪəl_ˈhɔːrən ; 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. 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. Horan's third studio album, titled The Show, was released in June 2023. It was preceded by the singles "Heaven" and "Meltdown", which were released in February and April 2023, respectively. Horan was born on 13 September 1993 in Mullingar, Westmeath, Ireland. He has an older brother, Greg who was born in 1987. His parents, Bobby Horan and Maura Gallagher (née Nolan), 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. He had asthma as a child. He attended St. Kenny's National School, a primary school, and Mary's College (Coláiste Mhuire), a Catholic boys school, which are both located in his hometown of Mullingar. 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. 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.