strong-shipping replied to your post:Do you really think Harry is "far & away" the most...
speaking for the twitter larries, most of the “older” fans (18+) are usually louis girls (and zouis fans) but love harry to pieces although we wouldn’t necessarily count him as our favourite..
Ah thanks. Not too different from the Tumblr Larries then. I think there are also a bunch of younger Larry fans on Twitter (at least based on some of the worldwide trends I have seen).
So that's still pretty consistent with Harry being widely popular through virtually all corners of the fandom.
Do you really think Harry is "far & away" the most popular among Larries?? Maybe it's just my own preference & maybe I just follow Louis-centric blogs, but I am a bit sad about that one.
No, sorry. Harry is far and away the most popular, in that he is in the top two for every big subset of fans. But, in my experience, most people have two favourites. So for Larries it's Harry and Louis, for young fans it's Harry and Niall, and for slightly older fans it's Harry and Zayn.
Harry is far and away the most popular overall, because he is extremely popular throughout the fandom.
[I do wonder about the Twitter Larrie fandom though...hmmm....]
ah sorry, by zouis vs lilo i meant there're zouis stans who don't ship them but just like them the most (like zarry), whereas a lot of lilo people ship them (like narry). and i don't know about zarry shippers but i have yet to meet a person who really thinks harry and zayn are in a relationship, whilst there're quite a few narry /believers/, that's the difference.
Oh Zouis stans, I see. Yeah that list really wasn't about shipping/supporting/stanning, it was just about various subsets who have two members as their top two for whatever reason.
Anyone, ANYONE who knows Narry believer blogs, please tell me their URLs there is nothing I want more in this world than to read Narry proof masterposts. I swear I'm not going to make fun of them, I just really want to see.
I haven't seen any Zarry believers either, just stans who ship them together. And I knew that people shipped Lilo, but do they actually believe it's real? I haven't seen that.
Nah there's a lot of ppl here who ship zarry, it's true that there's also a lot of blogs who only just favor harry and zayn and don't ship them together but zarry is pretty popular as a ship in it's own right. Idk why ppl think they're not shipped a lot ???
No, sorry, I wasn't clear. I put Zarry second on the list because if you include both the people that ship them, and the people that just like them both and focus their blog on them, then I think it's the second biggest ship after Larry. Does that make sense? But I wanted to point out that I wasn't saying that Zarry, as a ship, was bigger than the other ships, just that the number of fans who would rank Harry and Zayn as their top two is very high. The post wasn't actually meant to be about shipping, but about which boys are the most popular in which demographics.
So I would say that in ALL demographics, Harry is the most popular. The second most popular, in my opinion, among three other big groups of fans are:
Niall - among younger fans, which is the biggest group and the primary market
Louis - among Larries
Zayn - among older (18+), non-shipping fans
BUT, since there are some other big communities on tumblr, I gave them a mention too. But the primary point is that Harry is far and away the most popular amongst every group, with the 2nd slot varying depending on which demographic you are considering.
Since I talked about this...rather a lot. Here's a brief summary of how I think the fandom breaks down.
The biggest segment of the fandom, BY FAR, is relatively young teens, mostly casual fans, who like the music and think the boys are cute.This is the group that is most likely to enjoy fantasising about dating the boys themselves. Among these fans, the order of popularity is something like:
Harry
Niall
Zayn
Louis
Liam
It honestly doesn't even matter after the first two - Harry and Niall are the most popular. One interesting thing to consider is this: are Harry and Niall marketed as largely single because they are the most popular or are they the most popular because they are marketed as largely single?
The secondary group of fans are what I would call the Tumblr fans. I think they are slightly older (17+), and significantly more focused on shipping, whether because they actually believe a relationship exists or "just for fun." It's hard to say the sizes of these various ship communities (except to say that Larry is by far the largest) but they tend to strongly prefer the boys in their chosen ships to the other boys.
Larry
Zarry - I think that Harry and Zayn tend to be the most popular among non-Larry, slightly older fans.
Ziam
Narry
LiLo
Gr*les/H*zoff - Harry far and away the most popular with these bloggers
Zouis - Apparently shipping Zouis really is a thing
Eloun*r - Harry appears to be the most popular for these bloggers as well
Overall conclusions about the fandom as a whole - Harry is far and away the most popular. He is popular amongst young fans, amongst Larries, and amongst older shipping and non-shipping fans. Trying to manipulate his image to please all of those groups would be near impossible, but could account for some of what we have seen.
Niall is very popular amongst the main target market - young teens, which explains why his image has been treated like a traditional boyband member's. This is also the market that 1DHQ is clearly still targeting, so one could expect that Niall's image would be maintained more carefully and kept more positive than the other three boys.
3rd (and final) ask dump about the fandom's 1D order (with some stuff about Louis being lame too, thought it was a good idea to hide that behind a read more even if it's off topic)
Last night I dreampt that someone sent me an ask that was just a picture of a red leather-bound book with gold script saying "the topic is played out, it's time to STOP" with a picture of a stop sign. BUT, since earlier in the dream a 30 foot long snake was attacking people, and later in the dream I was part of a micro war with like a 80% casualty rate, in comparison the book really wasn't that intimidating.
1. Let's see, I'm an old person who was first intro'd to the boys in 2013 via some gossip site talking about Harry getting around (I wasn't interested). Then I saw them on the WOW report site where they'd run homoerotic gifs & was a little intrigued. From there to the BG blind item? Anyway, my 1st impressions were pretty negative on Harry - I thought he was far too thirsty for fame for my taste. And I laughed my ass off at his stylist-contrived Mick-Keith hybrid look. As for his looks,
As for looks, I always thought he was ugly-beautiful, but softer than a young dude normally is. My very 1st thought (when I saw a pic ca 2012) is that he would be bald by the time he's 30. On all 5, before I knew anything, I saw the GQ covers. Niall & Liam, I don't remember. Zayn I thought was scrawny but gorgeous until I read a comment about how low his forehead is & then it took me a long time not to focus on that. Harry I just eye-rolled at & Louis looked terrible. cont.
But already from the WOW gifs, I had pegged L as the gay one & the insecure one & immediately had a soft spot for him. When I got around to watching video diaries, I sometimes cringed at his desperation & sometimes was impressed with his poise. The 1st 'real time' thing I watched with them (accidentally) was 1D day. H looked like a star to me, but I didn't like him. I thought he seemed above it all & like too many ppl had told him how special he is. I was relieved at how much better L looked
4. than his GQ cover & how he'd gotten hot since the video diaries & subsequent baby fat period. The others didn't make an impression on me, though I remember wondering if H had refused to appear in a duo segment with Louis bc he didn't want to be challenged (funny to think of that now!). So a year+ later, H is now the recipient of mostly goodwill from me, but it does flow from my protective love of Louis. But since I've never been a fan of their music, the odd occassions I do watch a CONT.
I didn't like Harry before I entered the fandom either, for the same reasons, and because I bought into his media image as a fame-hungry womaniser.
I'm actually pretty amused at what you're saying about Zayn, because I always tease my mom relentlessly because she has a really small forehead (not me, I have the high brow of a queen). She will be glad to hear that Zayn Malik, Most Beautiful Human (tm), is the same.
I feel like what you are referring to as Louis' "baby fat period" is actually the period in which I think he looked the best. I guess I just like it when they are a little thicker, it's the same with Harry - I like when he has a little tummy and love handles.
How do you accidentally watch a 7 hour livestream? Please explain. I didn't get the last part of your message, but thanks for sharing!
One thing I tucked into my collection of 'this seems too deliberate to be random' - when The Sun aka 1dhq's mouthpiece ran that ridiculous piece for Harry's 21st, one thing that stuck out was how it was framed around Harry's drive to be "the biggest star in the world." Now sure we get the solo shit all the time, but that in combination with the new article about Harry writing for 4 wks solid with that producer, I wonder if some sort of solo venture for H is being seeded. Just bookmarking.
I would agree with you, except "Harry is going solo!" articles have been around since before the dawn of time. Give me a Liam is going solo article and I'll listen.
Heyyy, I've been reading all those asks about the 1D order and I was wondering if you have like a one big conclusion about it? I agree on most points you write when you answer so well yeah :) Anyway idk I've been 'stalking' your blog since yesterday and although I'm quite new to tumblr I can say that you're one of my favorite blogs on here right now, hope that was not too weird >< x
Thanks so much for the nice message!!! You certainly chose a day when my blog was a bit of a mess to start reading it! I'm so glad you like it though, that's awesome and not weird at all. I put all that content out into the public sphere because I want people to read it, so I'm gratified that people are! I have a few conclusions, but I think I'll put them in their own post in a minute.
I really don't get this "Harry was cast as the front-man and the hot one, so that is what he IS to the fandom, even though to the general public maybe he ISN’T" I mean since the beginning, all the girls (and boys) were attracted to him, that why they cast him as the front man, if they thought louis was right for that, they would've made him the front man, and gave harry the long-term relationship, besides they don't need to maniulate people's idea, Harry IS hot.
The context in which I said that was several people sharing stories where they introduced non-fans to the boys and those non-fans did not think that Harry was particularly attractive, nor did they understand why he was the frontman. That has been my personal experience as well when discussing the band with non-fans. [My personal favourite stories is when happy1days had her friends watch...something...and they all thought that Liam should be the frontman and also that he should go solo.]
I agree with you that at the beginning, Harry was chosen as the front man partially for his looks and partially for his charisma. (At the time, Liam was by far the strongest and most consistent singer [in my opinion] and I think they flirted with the idea of making him the frontman, but he just didn't have the charisma to pull it off, so Harry ended up with the role.) I don't think anyone has ever suggested that Louis would make sense as the front man, even if he is the leader of the band in other ways.
Anyway, things are different now - the boys look different, they act different, they sound different. Within the fandom, we are so inundated with the "fact" that Harry is the hot one, the one everybody wants, the frontman, that it is hard to realise that all of that isn't actually immutable fact. People who are not familiar with the official narrative and the boys' long-established personas do not automatically characterise them in the same way that the fandom does (due in part, I think, to long conditioning). It's just interesting.
I just don't see Niall having the ability to be the new frontman? I think the media looks at it as Harry + One Direction and I don't personally see how Niall could ever fill that roll. Harry is wickedly charming and interesting to people, very social and knows everyone. He fits the role well (minus the womanizing) do you think Niall will have as much success in that role?
Honestly? I think he will be terrible at it. I don't think it will work at all, and I think it's stupid for them to even try. I think it would be better to let Harry come out and STILL BE THE FRONTMAN. They would have to stop with the fauxmances, but if he and Louis were willing to do couples pap walks every now and then, I guarantee they would end up on magazine covers. It wouldn't be ideal for Harry, because he would inevitably have to do interviews and appearances and would not be able to keep his private life and relationship as private as he may want, but I think it would be far more effective at keeping the band's name in the public eye than trying to cast Niall in the role that Harry has had to play for the last four years.
Another bonus of that strategy is that Niall could remain perpetually single, which is what his fans clearly want. Keep Niall single for the young fans, and let Harry (and Louis) draw in older fans and keep the band in the forefront of people's minds.
I find louis wearing weed related merch so exasperating... I wish someone close to him told him how childish it makes him look. I know zayn does it too, and somehow I don't mind that but that's probably because louis was SO ANNOYING AND OBNOXIOUS about smoking in the infamous weed video... Like chill, pal, half the 20-something's do it , it doesn't make you cool nor is it something to broadcast publicly arghhhh I'm so frustrated with him
Honestly the first time I ever heard Louis speak was in the weed video, and I was completely lamed out. Everyone swears up and down that he was doing it as an intentional narration because the video was made to be leaked, and I hope they are right, but every time he wears stuff with weed on it I really wonder...
Louis and zayn need to come to Washington state .weed is completely legal here and literally nobody cares. Every time I take my kiddo to the park I have to lead him away from the weed smoke wafting on the wind...I've never been a fan of the ganja. But ya my 60 year old retired navy neighbors smoke it so not really revolutionary guys..lol.
That's the thing...nobody cares. There's no need to be so proud of themselves about it. Like, are they really restricted or something? Liam is kind of the same way about drinking...a bit pleased and proud of himself for getting drunk, like a teenager would be. Are they so restricted that this type of thing feels like a big deal? I don't know.
1. 23 yr old Louis wearing those Marley kicks to greet fans & then to sing with his boyband comes across as EXACTLY the sort of cringing poser who shows off for his mates by going across the world & wasting a fortune to take a private jet & to see Wiz K. Also fits in with the narrator from the weed video & w/someone who finds it clever to tweet at exactly 4:20 on 4/20. Or wear cannabis themed trackies. Or travel everywhere with his personal weed butler, Oli. CONT.
2. I know ppl are complicated but can you be THAT immature in one way & still be ok on balance? Just seems overdone to me, like some exaggerated, obnoxious part of his public persona. Maybe I'm overthinking it since I don't want to accept Louis as THAT GUY. Not bc he smokes, but all the posturing & Bieber-esque swagger about it. Maybe it spares him from being used for certain kinds of promo? (like tea trains) Eh, I dunno. But I want to think that he's doing it intentionally.
I hope so too...but even if he's not, and he's really like this, it's honestly not the end of the world. He's a young guy. Lots of young guys are like that, and they turn out just fine. I knew tons of people like this in University, and they all got over it. Even if he/they are being a bit over the top, flying around the world and stuff, they are multi-millionares, and that's their prerogative.
I try to just laugh at it when they are acting ridiculous or obnoxious rather than getting upset, it makes it much more fun.
I know you're trying to understand fandom, but we allegedly love these guys. To see beautiful, sweet Harry's personality, compared to a cat in heat and the temperament of a pedophile makes me sick. He's been dealt a shit-image hand since he was 16. What if he or his mom saw that? Hasn't he been hurt enough? Haven't they all? Let's be kind. Please remove those comments.
The funny thing is that I don't think either of those anons meant anything bad by their comments at all, even if they did go about expressing themselves in a weird way. And if Harry or his mom, (and now, given what I've posted above, Louis or his family), are literally reading ask dumps behind readmores...well...they're going to see some stuff. I'm sure they aren't though, don't worry.
I do agree that they have all been hurt a lot, that's very true. And I don't think you can argue that I am anything other than sympathetic to all five of them on my blog. But that doesn't mean we can't speculate about what they are actually like, since none of us know them.
I'm sorry if the comments upset you though, the conversation is over now so I don't foresee anything similar in the near future. :)
wait, didn't a Brazilian national tv recently made a live poll to determine the country's favourite 1D member? louis won. from their concerts in south america we can tell that louis is indeed a favourite in that region. perhaps it's because for them, louis is the most attractive physically. i believe that from fans IRL outside of tumblr very few people care about 'problematic' actions or whatnot, when it comes to boyband members it's mainly about who they think is the most attractive
Oh did they? That's interesting. And I do agree that outside of the hardcore fandom, most people choose their favourite based on looks or other superficial characteristics. (I don't mean that in a bad way, it's perfectly normal and acceptable).
Just to chip in on the attractiveness discussion if it's still going; my mum isn't a fan and I showed her the SOML video. She found Harry very unattractive, Zayn was handsome (of course) and she didn't comment on Niall. I don't know what she thought about Louis but I think she thought he was pretty? Liam I think she thought was attractive. I thought her views on Louis were interesting because my mum has a bit of a thing with crushing on gay men!
Oh poor Harry! I'm trying to remember what I thought of their looks when I first saw them, but I really can't. I know I didn't think Louis was attractive, but I first saw him in the You & I video, so you can't blame me. I definitely did (and do) think that Zayn was the most objectively attractive.
Interesting to see the opinions on order here ! I re-watched Season 7 of X Factor UK last night What different people they appear to be now ! How their positions have changed in interviews At first H was the go to guy! and now stays very quiet unless directly asked in confidence and in playfulness I miss Louis and Zayn used to be more connected to the crowds Liam is not so scared anymore I wish I knew if they were really happy It's kinda sad!
I really wish Louis acted more like he did back then, he was so lively and funny. We still see bits of it, but I would like more.
I wish we knew if they were really happy too. :/
Heyy, okay so this might be a bit late I'm sorry :) Okay so anyway, about the 1D order, I can't really answer it myself cause I'm a larrie but I put it in the group and all my friends gave me an answer ( although I had to attach a picture first for some lol) We're all 16 btw! The orders are different but harry or zayn do end a lot on the first place, (as I quote ' he's so hot I'd probably faint if I ever met him) Or they end at the last place. Some were like : harry louis liam niall zayn (1/2)
(2/2) but there were also things like : zayn-liam-louis-niall-harry. Some friends really didn't like the 'new' harry look, said they preferred him how he was in the past. Which is understandable, altho I think it's the real harry we get to see now, I saw someone mentioning it like : 'harry really doesn't give a fuck anymore now but in the nicest way possible' Also, or they like the way zayn looks or not at all. Liam and Niall aren't really that much mentioned. That's it, hope this was helpful!
Oh interesting, thanks for doing that! I agree that Harry is being much more true to himself with his aesthetic now, and he is clearly loving it, and so am I. But I understand if some people prefer his old style. I just love that he's being himself.
Poor Liam, always overlooked. He and Niall really are the "bland" ones.
Even though objectively, purely in terms of looks, I agree Zayn is probably the most handsome. But I can't help but find Harry extremely pretty when he smiles and very sexy when he wears that bun:) About Louis, I too first didn't really like him. You need to look further into him and see him turn into a puddle of goo over Harry and be cute with kids etc to start changing your opinion. Unfortunately many don't bother or care to make that effort:(
Harry is VERY pretty, isn't he? His eyes are so big and wide-set, and his lips...sigh. So pink and plush. He's really lovely.
I can't really blame people for being casual fans and not wading through all the bullshit surrounding Louis' image, but I absolutely do blame everyone who was responsible for the decision to portray him in the way he has been portrayed.
oops i forgot to mention but datalounge was always obsessed with louis and then there's kind of been a passing interest in harry there, like when gryles was big for a while. so yeah just more evidence that guys who like guys like louis.
Fascinating. I have also heard stories about gay guys who really like Zayn (his beauty, you know, is astounding). Remember Louis at G-A-Y?? That was so wonderful.
