Let’s be completely honest for a minute: I am 100% completely and hopelessly in love with One Direction. I know it’s juvenile, but that hasn’t stopped me yet. In fact, I live for singing at the top of my lungs to FOUR alongside my twelve-year-old niece. Since sophomore year of high school my slight-obsession with these five guys hasn’t backed down, and I thought I’d share with you why.
1. Their music is catchy, and makes me unbelievably happy.
As much as I like to pretend I’m a brooding hipster who constantly listens to Arctic Monkeys and The 1975, I’m not ashamed to say I go hard to What Makes You Beautiful. They have a rock-driven sound, that is poppy, but not too poppy, which leaves me bouncing in my seat and jumping around.
2. They’re British!
Honestly, who doesn’t love a nice English, or Irish, man who can sing well and look good while doing it? It’s entrancing to watch their interviews and listen to them go on in their adorable accents, even when they’re talking about their favorite food or something equally unimportant.
3. The hair.
Can we just take a minute to appreciate their hair stylist? Please? Whether it’s Harry’s signature curly locks or Niall’s bleached blonde beauty, they always look flawless when it comes to the top of their heads. I don’t understand how anyone could pull off throwing a scarf all around their head and still look attractive, but somehow Harry Styles does.
4. They’re genuinely best friends.
You can tell by the way they interact on stage that even if they weren’t thrown together as a band at 16, they would all still get on like a house on fire. They’re constantly joking around, executing pranks, and interacting with each other in ways brothers would— and it makes them so much more likable!
5. They’re low-key really funny.
I say low-key because honestly, they’re just really stupid sometimes. One time Harry told a joke during a concert that went a bit like this: Why did the baboon ask the giraffe ‘why the long face’? Because he thought the giraffe’s neck was his face. That isn’t even funny, but I remember cry-laughing about it the first time I heard it. Maybe it’s just too endearing to not love.
6. Tattoos!!!!
This might just be me, but I have a soft spot for a guy with tattoos, and One Direction is not short on that. Every member but Niall has multiple ink doodles crawling up their arms, ranging from quotes to birthdays to pictures.
7. I’ve met some great friends through the band.
My best friend and I met based on a shared affection for One Direction. In fact, the first time we hung out was sleeping at the Mall of America in order to get wristbands for a signing (it was sophomore year, and it was amazing, if you were wondering). There are countless fans around the world who have built everlasting bonds with others solely because of the way One Direction makes them feel. How cool is that?
8. They’re easy on the eyes.
Try and tell me Harry Styles or Zayn Malik are not two of the most attractive males on the planet. Please, I dare you. I’ll provide you with a 2,000 word essay explaining why you are wrong. They’re appeal has a lot to do with their music and their personalities, but it also has to do with their faces. I’ll pay a lot of money to see that beauty up close, and so would millions of other girls.
9. They put on a great show.
I’ve been lucky enough to attend two One Direction concerts, and they’re some of the best I’ve experienced. Everyone is jumping and screaming and having the time of their lives. There are streamers and fireworks and strobe lights—it’s literally a party. If you ever get the chance, even if you don’t think you’ll like it, go! You won’t regret it.
10. They’re good people.
Even though they’re young adults trying to have a good time, they’re also the type of people who want to help as many people as they can. Louis Tomlinson is constantly donating to charities and making wishes come true, Zayn Malik made a sculpture of Gromit from Wallace and Gromit and raised £26,000 for charity, and as a band they are always working with any foundation they can get their hands on. They even recorded and sold a single for Comic Relief, a popular charity in the U.K.
There are so many more things I could say about why this band is my favorite in the universe, but I’ll leave it at that. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to continue to dance around my room to all four of their albums.