so let me get this straight: Liam confirms they’ve been talking about the REUNION™️ and a new song (Muse, written by Liam himself and Louis) gets registered?
After what’s felt like approximately a 1 million-year wait, I finally feel like Louis Tomlinson’s debut solo album is close to completion. Tomlinson, formerly of One Direction fame, has released four songs of his own since the group went on hiatus in 2015, but we have yet to get a full-length album. We have, however, gotten some leading tweets and even a snippet from his Instagram story. Let’s take a closer look at what Tomlinson’s been up to over the past couple years and everything we know about his upcoming album.
What He’s Been Up To
The 26-year-old recently tweeted that he’s been working on his upcoming solo album for the past two years, which checks out, considering that’s how long 1D has been on a (hopefully not permanent) break.
In the meantime, he’s released “Just Hold On” with Steve Aoki and “Back to You” with Bebe Rexha, as well as two solo ventures, “Just Like You” and “Miss You.” The songs include a lot of “yous,” so it sounds like his first trip out to the charts on his own will be a deeply personal one. There’s no telling which, if any, of the previous releases will be on the album, but Tomlinson did say previously that “Just Like You” would be included. That one and “Miss You” have a similar vibe that would make sense on an album together.
What’s Causing the Delay
What has had fans confused is that Tomlinson himself said the album was nearly finished months ago, even tweeting about listening to it in August and sharing a snippet of a song presumably on it.
Yet here we are in Spring 2018 and all we have to go on is a Colombian radio station saying the album is coming in the next few weeks, and promise after promise that the music is nearly ready.
What He Has to Say About the Delay
Tomlinson has been vocal about possible tension with his label and releasing the songs he wants to release, including “Just Like You,” so honestly, who the hell knows what might be included on this album. But here’s what I think of the whole matter.
Tomlinson is an amazing songwriter with a lot of stories to tell. He’s done more living in the past eight years as a musician than most people do in an entire lifetime. He has explicitly said that he wants to “keep sh*t real and honest,” and who knows how prepared a record label is to let a new solo artist say everything they want to say. He’s been up front about “industry sh*t” pissing him off, so that could be a factor in what seems to be a delay in his album release.
It’s also worth noting that the four former members of One Direction have, whether intentionally or not, not really competed with each other in the solo field. Harry Styles, Niall Horan, and Liam Payne have all staggered their musical releases, and only Horan and Styles have dropped full-length albums thus far. As of late, Payne has hit the road in a few other countries doing bigger and bigger performances, but that doesn’t necessarily mean his album is ready to go. Tomlinson, on the other hand, has been head down in the studio, which makes sense if he’s finally putting the finishing touches on an album.
So When Will We Have the Album?
While things can change at the drop of the hat, when Tomlinson shared the below tweet back in February and a fan asked if the album would be ready in the first half of this year, his response was simply, “It’s what I’m aiming for :)”
All of us fans are basically champing at the bit to finally get our hands on what we’re sure will be a masterpiece, not to mention spend every last dollar on tickets to see him carry his own tour. I mean, I’m already spending all my money on tickets to see Styles and Horan to fill the Tomlinson-size hole in my life and can’t f*cking wait to see just what he’ll have for us. As for when we’ll get it, only time will tell; for the sake of our sanity, I’m hoping it’s soon.
when you accidentally knock over a barricade into your fans and you flashback to the last time you injured a fan and how much money you had to shell out to keep that failed crowd surf attempt from seeing the light of day