Niall Horan’s New Single Marks the Start of a New Era
Quoting the man himself, his top two requests on a regular basis are ‘Niall give us new music’ and ‘Niall what’s your skincare routine’. Lucky for us, we got blessed with both. And although we all want to be glowing as much as Niall Horan is at the ripe age of 29, his new single deserves some of our attention as well.
The former boy band-blondie has since the ‘hiatus’ in 2015 found his own sound. As a solo artist, Niall has not one, but two studio albums under his belt. The Irish singer-songwriter started off his post-One Direction career with his debut solo single ‘This Town’ back in 2016 and in the following year, he released his debut solo studio album, Flicker. With unfortunate timing, right as the Covid-19 pandemic hit in March of 2020, he put out his second studio album Heartbreak Weather.
After much teasing across his social media channels in the past month and high anticipation from his fanbase, all needs were instantly fulfilled when Niall Horan’s new single ‘Heaven’ finally dropped on February 17th.
I must admit, I wasn’t particularly wowed by the track at first listen. Niall has, after all, set the bar high for himself with his previous music. After a few listens, however, it has grown on me. The track starts off with a layering of angelic-sounding vocals and proceeds to build into just over three minutes of pure heaven. Recorded in Southern California, one can almost feel the sun shining through the energy of the song, and it creates a feeling of pure bliss. The track has a bass beat which fans were quick to compare to Horan’s former band member Harry Styles’ song ‘Grapejuice’, but it’s an undeniably catchy groove and the chorus is already stuck in everyone’s heads.
“God only knows where this could go/And even if our love starts to grow out of control/And you and me go up in flames/Heaven won’t be the same.”
Niall discusses his new record in a press release, saying that “One thing I’ve learned over the years is that society loves to pressure us into reaching certain milestones by a certain age. Whether that’s getting married or anything else that really should be based on our own instincts. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve tried to let go of those expectations and just follow my heart. The chorus of this song is saying that what I have in my life currently is amazing. So, it would be crazy to ruin that by giving in to outside pressures.”
As if his commitment to the golf course wasn’t enough, Niall has, along with Chance the Rapper, joined returning coaches Blake Shelton and Kelly Clarkson on the panel for season 23 of NBC’s The Voice. On top of that, Horan just announced the June release of his next album The Show, saying “This album is a piece of work I’m so proud of and now it’s time to pass it over to you to go and make it your own.” His new single ‘Heaven’ marks the start of this new era, and June 9th cannot come soon enough. “I’ve missed you all so much”, Niall wrote on Instagram. “It’s good to be back. Welcome to ‘The Show’.”
‘Heaven’ is out now on streaming platforms.