Niall Horan has revealed what has been keeping him grounded all these years: his “Irishness”.
The 29-year-old was catapulted into the spotlight on 2010’s X Factor as one fifth of One Direction, who went on to become one of the most successful boybands in history.
Despite finding stratospheric fame with the group, Horan has remained humble and has credited his upbringing in Mullingar, Westmeath, for keeping his feet on the ground amid his success both in the band and as a solo artist.
When asked how he balances his pop star life, he shared: “God knows. I just kind of go along with it.
“I’m very carefree, kind of ‘cross that bridge when I come to it’ kind of person, and I just keep going along with things and see what happens.
“The Irishness plays a big part, I think.”
He told Metro: “It’s just the way we are, there is no grey area when you’re Irish. It’s all very black and white, I think that’s probably it.
“There’s a humbleness to it. I know you shouldn’t really say that but there is, I guess so, you just kinda go along with it.”
The Slow Hands singer’s comments come after Horan, who has released his third studio album The Show, revealed that he was too afraid to leave his house during the height of One Direction’s popularity.
Horan, along with bandmates Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Liam Payne and Zayn Malik, released five albums and enjoyed four world tours before going on an indefinite hiatus in 2016.
The Heaven hitmaker admitted that while his career was flying high, his personal life was severely impacted at the height of the band’s fame so much so he feared leaving his home in London.
“I loved touring, but it was f***ing crazy,” he told Cosmopolitan UK . “We’d go to countries and never see a second of it — it was hotel, venue, plane, same again.
“We couldn’t get out the [hotel] door. If you went out in the car, you’d be seen and chased [by fans].
“I understand why it was going on, but it gave me a thing where, when I came back to London, I would be afraid to go out. There was a period where I actually couldn’t.”
