Is This the End of One Direction? Harry Styles Signs Solo Recording Contract

By: Jun. 24, 2016
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Billboard reports that One Direction's Harry Styles has inked a solo recording contract with Columbia Records, the same label that currently represents the popular boy band.

The news follows reports that Styles would be the next group member to depart following Zayn Malik's exit in March of 2015. One Direction was formed on the British X Factor in 2010.

According to the site, rumors of Styles' exit began to swirl when four songs performed and written by the 22-year-old singer were registered with the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP). He is also set to make his big-screen debut in Christopher Nolan's World War II drama, Dunkirk.

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One Direction - composed of Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson - formed in 2010 on the U.K.'s award-winning TV talent show "The X Factor." The group's debut single, "What Makes You Beautiful," was released in September 2011 and went straight to #1 in the U.K., with their first album, "Up All Night," following suit and also topping the Billboard album chart in the U.S. The release of their second album, "Take Me Home," took One Direction to #1 in 37 countries. Their third album, "Midnight Memories," was announced as the biggest selling album globally of 2013. One Direction's fourth #1 studio album, "FOUR" featured hit singles "Steal My Girl" and "Night Changes." The album made Billboard history as the only group in the 58-year history of the chart to see their first four albums debut at number one.

The band has sold more than 50 million records worldwide, achieved a total of 91 number ones, and is the recipient of five Billboard Music Awards, four MTV VIDEO MUSIC AWARDSand five American Music Awards, among others. They have a massive 115 million Twitter followers and 38 million Facebook fans. One Direction surprised fans in July 2015 with the release of their single "Drag Me Down," breaking the record for the most streams of any one song in a single week at the time. The band's fifth studio album 'MADE IN THE A.M.' was released on November 13, 2015.

Image: One Direction Official Web Site



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