r/OneDirection

take this with a grain of salt pls since my memory about this is very hazy now.

so we all know of one direction’s documentary film “this is us” released in 2013. as someone who wanted to watch the movie at the time, i decided to pirate it since the movie wasn’t released in theaters from where i lived iirc. i usually go to yts to download the movie but i tried to search for the full movie on youtube. eventually, the full movie did come up on youtube. i remember downloading it immediately, thinking it might get taken down.

i don’t remember much, but what i do remember was that some clips of the movie were altered, either cut shorter or made longer. it’s still the same movie, but i think most of the differences are with the concert clips(?)

that’s all i can really say about it. this was the first version of “this is us” i saw. that’s why when i got the actual dvd a year later, i was surprised by how there are differences to the one i watched from youtube. i’ve led to believe that movie on youtube was edited by the fan who posted it, but idk. this version of the movie i downloaded from youtube is on my old phone that doesn’t work anymore, and if i tried searching it up on youtube today, it doesn’t show anymore.

I noticed that most posts covering Louis Tomlinson's 16th anniversary but only highlighted a few of the popular songs. Since Louis is my favorite and I'm a lifelong Directioner, I thought it would be worth documenting everything he shared while reminiscing about the band's journey.

So I went through all of his stories, compiled every song along with his comments, and even made a playlist so you can listen along in the same order.

I think moments like these deserve to be preserved because they're such a rare glimpse into how Louis feels looking back at One Direction after 16 years.

https://preview.redd.it/3p5rbnint5fh1.jpg?width=919&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=65452d456420423c3e88702215c7e433f4671a18

Here's the full list:

• Moments — "So many special memories with this one. Absolutely classic `@teddysphotos` melody. First time I ever felt really proud of my own vocal on track."
• Na Na Na — "Peak lyricism."
• More Than This — "Pretty sure this was when Liam first discovered his falsetto. I remember how proud we all were. He sounds incredible!"
• Live While We're Young — "Not my fav but huge pop song. Still remember shooting the video clearly. Some amazing memories that day!"
• Kiss You — "Always loved this one."
• C'mon, C'mon — "Huge live!!"
• Over Again — "Always reminds me of Niall for some reason."
• Midnight Memories — "Defo top 3 for me. Remember it clear as day, written in London!"
• Don't Forget Where You Belong — "Niall's tune."
• Strong — "Still remember hearing this chorus for the first time in the room. Special song."
• Through the Dark — "Liam's low breakdown chorus!! Some tone that."
• Why Don't We Go There — "Remember being really proud showing the boys this one."
• Half a Heart — "Didn't love this at the time but it's actually a tune."
• Steal My Girl — "One of my favourite singles."
• 18 — "Another special one. This was one of my mum's favourites. She had me when she was 18, so it always had a lovely feeling singing this one."
• Girl Almighty — "Huuuuuuuuuuge live."
• Fireproof — "Love this! P.S. I'm listening top to bottom but not putting every song on my story."
• Stockholm Syndrome — "Had to do something but back to it now."
• Clouds — "Banger live!!!"
• Change Your Ticket — "Can hear how much we all liked The 1975 album out around this time."
• Act My Age — "Really nostalgic."
• Infinity — "Did we end up releasing the video for this? I'm sure we filmed one and it got scrapped, but could be wrong."
• Long Way Down — "The kind of song that makes me so incredibly proud of where we ended up. Lush production. Far too good for a 'boy band'."
• Olivia — "Soooo many of this record never got played live. Did we ever do this? Baaaanger."
• What a Feeling — "Again, different kind of quality to a song like this. Huuuuge."
• I Want to Write You a Song — "Looooved my chorus vocal on this."

I've also made a playlist with all of these songs in order if anyone wants to relive the journey alongside Louis. ❤️

Note: I originally posted this on r/Niallhoran since my realization happened while listening to his music, but since it's also about the impact 1D had on my vision of love, I felt like sharing it with this community too.

Hi, I wanted to share something that happened to me just today. I don't have many people to share it with, so I'm doing it here because I really need to. I'll try to keep it short, but it won't be easy. I'm a 20-year-old guy, I've been a Directioner for 4 years, and I love 1D as well as Zayn's and, more recently, Niall's solo careers.

Two days ago, I did some really deep introspection about myself and potential relationships. I've never been in a relationship, and I thought I never would be because I believed I was someone no one would be interested in. But all of that changed. I realized that everything I thought was frowned upon, and outside of what women look for in a guy, was actually just a matter of perspective. I learned to recognize my own qualities, realize that I could be an interesting person, and see that I actually have a very healthy and mature vision of relationships. It's just far from what I thought society expected of me. I don't want to sound like I'm selling myself, of course, I just want to give some context. I used to think that to be the ideal man, you had to be muscular, extroverted, and assert some kind of "dominance". But I want the exact opposite. I want to be able to lean on someone when I need to, show her that I love her, let her be herself, and never try to dominate her in any way. I want to share real moments of love with her, no matter how insignificant they might seem. So, I realized that I won't be everyone's type, but I will be for some people, and that's already great.

Today, I listened to a rap song because a personality I like (who is normally far removed from all that) was in it, even though I don't usually like that kind of music. By the end of it, I felt dirty and outraged. It was so vulgar and disrespectful towards women that it actually hurt me to hear. So I decided to listen to Niall to kind of "cleanse" my mind, and my playlist shuffled to "No Judgement". I started singing along, and that's when the lyrics really hit me. I realized that these lyrics—which until now I either didn't fully pay attention to or just thought were beautiful, preferring to focus on the good vibes, the rhythm, and Niall's voice—were actually a reflection of exactly what I want to say to someone, someone I would love deeply. And it made me cry for several minutes. It made me realize that all this time, I’ve shared this vision of a respectful and deeply affectionate love, just like you hear in 1D’s and Niall's music.

Sorry for the long post, I just really needed to talk about it.

After work today I’m going to crack open a fruity lil wine cooler and partake in my annual viewing of This Is Us while I fold some overdue laundry lol

I remember that back in the day, the band anniversary was always a big exciting day on Twitter/Tumblr. Like REALLY exciting. I feel like celebrating the date was pounded into me as a teenager and now acknowledging it is in my bones.

I’m curious if anyone still does anything to celebrate it? I watch the Torn performance every year and watch This Is Us on or around the day.