About 1D
Some joked that it was their similar height, while others said it was their hair - either way, only Simon Cowell knows what made him want to take five failed X Factor solo act boys and turn them into one amazing group.
Harry, Liam, Niall, Louis and Zayn were all set to go home. They had auditioned for The X Factor judges as solo acts and they'd each made it all the way to Boot camp. Once they each entered boot camp, they were cut and told it wasn't enough.
However, Simon saw something in the five teens and called them back. "This is a lifeline," he said after announcing that they'd be put into a new group. "You've got a real shot here guys."
The band started rehearsing furiously - they needed to define their sound, their look and yes, even think of a name! In just a few short weeks, Harry came up with the perfect name. "We all wanted the same thing from the start, so I came up with the name One Direction," he spilled.
Sparks flew when the five guys stepped on to the X Factor stage for their first live TV performance - they sang Coldplay's "Via La Vida." People immediately started saying that Harry, Liam, Niall, Louis and Zayn were five megastars in the making. After their first performance, fan fever started heating up. By week four, the 1D boys were getting mobbed everywhere they went!
When the time came for the show's finals, 1D came in third. Even though they lost to singer Matt Cardle, everyone knew that the five awesome singers were destined for greatness. After the show ended, 1D disappeared from the public eye to work on new music. In September 2011, they returned with a hit debut single "What Makes You Beautiful." The song went straight to number on the UK charts. Their first album, Up All Night, entered at number one in six countries.
The guy's guest spot on Nickelodeon's iCarly and a U.S. tour with Big Time Rush started 1D buzz in America. On March 13, 2012, One Direction made history as they became the first-ever UK band to score a number one on the Billboard charts with a debut album. 1D are everywhere right now - they're all over TV, radio and the pages of BOP and Tiger Beat! They're quickly becoming the biggest stars in the world, but these five hotties know what comes first - their fans. "We can't think everyone enough for all the support they've given us!" they spill. "We love every single one of our fans so much!"
