Louis Tomlinson is getting real about the moment One Direction decided to part ways.
Directioners will remember how Zayn Malik‘s March 2015 departure from the band started the official downward spiral for the rest of the group. Less than a year later in 2016 the remaining members of the band announced they’d be taking an extended “hiatus” — which sadly ended up being permanent. It was a HUGE deal at the time for fans everywhere… And now Louis is explaining what exactly went down behind the scenes.
During his new podcast episode on Diary of a CEO, the 33-year-old musician said he was never prepared for the success that 1D would garner… and he wasn’t prepared for the end of the band, either. He said it hit him like a ton of bricks:
“It was awful. It wasn’t until after the event that I realized that I actually computed all of these feelings. But it was like I was straight grieving for it — grieving the band. Unfortunately, as someone who has a bit of experience in grief… It felt different, but it was a version of the same thing. It was something that I really wanted, that I couldn’t have anymore.”
Aww…
He went on to describe himself as a “glass half full kind of guy” — but said he tried his best to ignore what he knew was coming. The end of One Direction:
“You’re like … ‘It’s never gonna come to that’, whatever, and then we had a meeting one day and it did.”
Explaining that meeting — which included remaining 1D members Niall Horan, Harry Styles, and the late Liam Payne — he said:
“What’s really fascinating is those real serious moments—we wouldn’t have a lot of them in One Direction. We were just kind of going with the flow and really happy for each other and stuff like that. But I think those kind of moments where you have to be selfish, it was an atmosphere that I never really felt in the band.”
Related: Louis Reveals Which One Direction Member Told Him When Liam Died
Referencing Zayn’s departure, he added:
“We were arms in arms, there was all this camaraderie, and then you’d get someone thinking more independently and more for themselves — which, by the way, they have every right to do.”
The meeting was so intense, the Miss You singer even said “the room felt cold that day”:
“I can remember that, in particular … It was something where these are all the same faces that I’ve seen every single day, but I’ve never quite felt an energy like that in the room. There was this emptiness. And I think probably because we knew, we all knew, collectively, where it was going.”
The British pop star went on to say the thing that “bothered” him the most, though, was the use of the word “hiatus” in their announcement. He said he was “naïve” for thinking they’d ever come back together:
“I remember saying, well, if I want to try and do some stuff on my own, and at this point I didn’t even know what I was going to do, I was like, be good to know how long this break’s gonna be for. So let’s speculate. A year? Two years? Five years? 10 years? 15 years? I never really got an answer to that question, which I understand now. Because, truthfully, I don’t think the people — person — involved was brave enough to answer that question deep down. I think they probably knew the reality, and that’s why it was rough.”
Ugh. That had to be so tough to deal with. We really appreciate Louis opening up like this!
Watch for yourself around the 42:30 timestamp (below):
Now, with the tragic loss of their “brother” Liam, a proper One Direction reunion can never happen. Such a sad ending… We continue to send so much love to the 1D boys on all their solo adventures.
Reactions, Perezcious readers? Sound OFF (below).
[Image via Diary of a CEO/YouTube/MEGA/WENN]