Niall Horan Essentials

In the ubiquitous One Direction, sole Irish member Niall Horan was known for his warm vocal delivery on midtempo boy-next-door ballads and cheeky PG pop. As a solo artist, he’s all grown up—evolving his penchant for acoustic adroitness without abandoning his youthful charms. From his impressive 2017 soft-rock solo debut, Flicker, to the ’90s Britpop worship and hand-clap-heavy, less-than-coded carnality of “Nice to Meet Ya,” Horan's sound is something new, built from the pieces of the past. The bass-forward, breathy folk-pop of “Slow Hands,” the Sheeran-esque “This Town,” and contemporary collaborations with Julia Michaels (“What a Time”) and country star Maren Morris (“Seeing Blind”) prove Horan’s pitch-perfect pop harmonies are unimpeachable—just as they were in his 1D days.