Illustration by Laura Lannes Welcome to New Retro Week, a celebration of the biggest artists, hits, and cultural moments that made 2012 a seminal year in pop. MTV News is looking back to see what lies ahead: These essays showcase how today’s blueprint was laid a decade ago. Step into our time machine. By Larisha Paul There was no blueprint for One Direction. Before their formation in 2010, the landscape of competing boy bands whose mere name evoked thousands of screaming fans was barren. Predecessors like Backstreet Boys and NSYNC were either past their peak or already broken up — and none of them had been unexpectedly thrown together on a singing competition show. During their stint on The X Factor (U.K.), Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson, and Liam Payne were tasked with performing covers week after week while learning how to perform in a group that shared the spotlight, rather than crafting individual sounds as solo artists like they had hoped when auditioning. All the while, they attracted an audience of millions in a matter of months. Simon Cowell, who orchestrated One Direction’s formation, signed the group to Syco Records and set them — or more accurately, a crew of pop producers and songwriters — to work on their debut album, 2011’s Up All Night. The anticipation was high, and they had to get it right. Songs for the album had been sourc… Click below to read the full story from MTV News
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Take Me Home Found One Direction Rewriting The Boy-Band Script
