Louis Tomlinson graced a no-holds-barred interview with The Guardian where he talked about One Direction, his co-members, and his role in the popular English-Irish pop boy group. In fact, the 25-year-old singer has nothing, but good words about the four other members yet considers himself the least favorite from the band.
The kid at the back
The One Direction singer candidly said he has stayed mostly in the background, while his co-members enjoyed the success of being in the front row since the band was formed in 2010. Tomlinson added some people even think of him as "forgettable, to a certain degree" because of being the man at the back.
He used to think that he was as fearless as Niall Horan, who charmed the fans with his happy-go-lucky attitude and his no sense of arrogance. He also compared himself to Zayn Malik, who used to be as shy as him when One Direction was just starting out, but unlike him, the "Pillowtalk" artist became an instant success because of his vocals. Meanwhile, Tomlinson commended Liam Payne for his good stage presence, and Harry Styles for his cool aura.
“And then there’s me. You know I didn’t sing a single solo on the "X Factor." A lot of people can take the piss out of that," he told the publication, recalling his experience in the competition where it all started.
But despite getting the least attention, Tomlinson was willing to step up his performance in the band when One Direction suddenly announced that they are going on hiatus in 2015.
The "Just Hold On" singer admitted he contested about the separation but eventually failed to convince the three other members to continue. “It wasn’t necessarily a nice conversation. I could see where it was going," he added.
What he has been doing after 1D hiatus
Tomlinson revealed it was not his plan to promote as a solo artist after the boy group separated.
In fact, he chose to return to "The X Factor" where he served as one of the competition's guest judges in 2015. In the same year, the One Direction member established his own record agency, called Triple Strings Ltd, and has been writing songs for other artists.
After a year of shying away from performing as a soloist, the English finally released "Just Hold On" featuring DJ Steve Aoki and performed the collaborative song on "The X Factor UK" season finale.
Tomlinson dedicated his stage comeback to his late mother who died from leukemia.
The One Direction member credited his mom for being his number one fan even when he doubted himself. Tomlinson is currently gearing up for the release of his newest single "Back To You" with Bebe Rexha and Digital Farm Animals.