Louis Tomlinson did not need a crystal ball to see Harry Styles\u2019 future. Even back in the One Direction days, he says the signs were already there.<\/p>\n
In a Billboard <\/a>cover story published on Monday, Jan. 12, the musician looked back on the band\u2019s 2015 split and explained why Styles\u2019 solo success never surprised him.<\/p>\n Seeing It Before Everyone Else<\/p>\n \u201cI always knew Harry was going to go on to do what he\u2019s done \u2014 I\u2019m sure he\u2019s superseded his own expectations in the way that he\u2019s taken over the world, but we knew he\u2019s got everything it takes to be a great artist,\u201d said Tomlinson.<\/p>\n Styles, now best known for hits like \u201cAs It Was,\u201d was not the only former bandmate Tomlinson believed in. He also pointed to Niall Horan as someone he felt confident about early on.<\/p>\n “Niall [Horan] I had a good feeling about too \u2014 he\u2019s Irish, he\u2019s lovely, everyone loves him,” said Tomlinson.<\/p>\n Why Solo Success Is Rare<\/p>\n Tomlinson added that history is not exactly kind to boy bands when it comes to solo careers.<\/p>\n “History says there\u2019s not normally more than two,” added Tomlinson.<\/p>\n That reality made the future feel uncertain for him when One Direction came to an end.<\/p>\n Fear After the Breakup<\/p>\n He admitted it was “really f—ing scary” to think about what life would look like after the group.<\/p>\n \u201cI was never thinking, \u2018I\u2019ll be in that group [of One Direction alumni] that succeeds,'” said Tomlinson.<\/p>\n Those feelings were still raw years later. In a February 2023 interview with The Times<\/a>, Tomlinson said the breakup hit him hard.<\/p>\n “When One Direction split up, I was mortified, I was absolutely gutted,” he said at the time. “I was a bit bitter, I suppose because it just felt like another loss to me.”<\/p>\n He also shared how his mindset has changed since then.<\/p>\n Added Tomlinson, “But I’ve a better understanding of things now, and there’s not as much anger. It is what it is.”<\/p>\n Moving Forward on His Own Terms<\/p>\n