They Wrote My Love Letter For You (P.2)

The band we've all been waiting to hear about- the answer to our questions-

One Direction.

2011 Debut Album: Up All Night

Wow. Who are all these people? Correct me if I'm wrong, but this says that the 1D guys only wrote for 3/13 of their album. And since they only sing, you know they did not write for any instruments. Speaking of instruments, every band I've mentioned before, actually play their instruments. Thought I'd point that out. I won't go into comparisons of quality of lyrics, but looking only at this list, it's kinda a let down. Why are they popular, again? Besides good looks, I mean.

Another very distinct difference between them and the other 3, and a very important factor to help explain them better lies in their origin. These guys became a band not of their own choosing, and not because they went to high school together (like Parachute) or played music in the same town (like the Beatles), but because they were a product of The X Factor factory line. They had been competing separately, they were placed together into a band, and the rest is history.

I don't think the 5 guys here were really able to get into writing their own music and all that comes with that before they got instant stardom. Sure, many musicians had been writing for years before hitting the age the 1D guys became a band. But still. They never got to see how they fit together before they had fans whom they'd never met before. This band was born straight from the industry. The fact that their merch ranges from action figures to duvets should not be surprising considering this. So, have they improved over time? Let's see.

2013 3rd Album: Midnight Memories

Okay, so they've only been together since Mid-2010. After three years, the Beatles only had 8/14 + 8/14 of their own songs in that release year. If you think about it, it's a bit insane that 1D released an album after only 1 year of being together. They did co-write 11/14 of these... not a single one without help, though. Is it snobbish to be disappointed by that? Let's be honest though, I feel like I hear about Harry and Zayn the most, but 1D would be nothing without Liam and Louis. The other 3 boys helped collectively on a total of 5 songs, and never as the first-listed writer. Ouch. To the defense of one of them, Niall has actually learned a little of guitar. Has he used it? No idea. But let's get back to the Beatles.

This world is forever comparing bands to the Beatles. Not necessarily a band thing, just very inaccurate sometimes. One Direction has been compared a lot. But they're not even the same genre of music!

Similarities between Beatles & 1D:

• Attractive males
• Assumedly straight
• Bands where everyone sings at some point
• Very popular with teen girls
• Go on world-tours
• Won music awards
• From the UK

Honestly, I don't see it. They are SO different. But maybe everyone recognizes that now. Because at the 2014 Billboard Music Awards, another band was compared to the Beatles.

5 Seconds of Summer....

This was honestly the best video I could find of this. In case you hadn't heard of them, 5sos is an Australian band that started from YouTube when their lead singer, Luke, started posting videos in 2011. That was in February, and by December, they were a 4-piece. By May 2012, they'd written their first song, and they started touring that very year. This band was born out of YouTube, and has only gotten bigger. One Direction (Louis, then Niall) found them and invited them to open for them on tour. Twice. And they haven't even released their first album yet. Not only are these guys getting compared to The Beatles, but there are major comparisons between them and 1D. And you know what? The Beatles comparison is more accurate.

2014 Debut Album: 5 Seconds of Summer

Just because their album isn't released yet doesn't mean the Discography and Track List isn't either. And actually, they've released 3 Eps, and they're releasing a 4th one too, so it's not like this album is the first thing they've ever released. Okay, so they didn't write any of these songs completely by themselves. But they are listed 11/12 of them, and are the first listed writers in 10/12. Their lead singer isn't even 18 yet. That's pretty impressive. And with as much as they talk about writing the music and hearing people sing their lyrics, I'd say they write a significant amount of their stuff. Heck, they even wrote an Unofficial World Cup song for BBC Radio 1 just because they asked for it. Except the main repeated line of the chorus to one of their singles. But you know what? They're honest about it, and the fans know.

I think that's key. It's nearly impossible for a truly big and popular band to write without help, and in many cases it's BENEFICIAL for them to get help. Remember, you can't write in a vacuum. As for what I think, once you've gone a couple albums, write your own music. Write with band mates, and use other bands and writers in the industry as resources, but for the most part, write your own music.

Back to the band. I think the world needs to keep an eye on these guys. They could, as the BMAs said, bring an Aussie Invasion. I don't doubt it. I think that would be quite refreshing, actually. Besides 5sos, San Cisco is really the only other Aussie band I listen to. And I would love for them, and whatever awesome Aussie bands I don't know about, to have a chance to be the next thing.

A quick 5sos/Beatles list of things they have in common:

• All the things from the 1D comparison, except for the "where they're from"
• While all do sing, the drummer doesn't sing much
• Lead singers are mainly 1 of the guitars & the bassist
• At their start, bands from their country were not the worldwide popular thing
• Play their own instruments, write their own music
• Members were really young at the start (& the youngest plays guitar!)
• Not all from the same high school, but all from the same town/area
• Members were added gradually, with drummers being last (Sorry Ringo. Sorry Ash.)
• They left their town to perform, very early in their career
• Mainly considered to be rock
• Constant comparisons to the same band over & over (Rolling Stones & One Direction)
• Very close relationship with their fans (much thanks to Freda & YouTube/Twitter)

I could talk a good bit more about these bands, but I think that's enough for now. It is true, I don't know much about 1D, while I do know a lot about some of these other bands, but I'm not quite done talking about music and the writers.

What about solo artists? They have a band, but they don't really have bandmates. What does our current range of solo artists look like, when you're looking at their infamous lists...?

Guess what Part 3 will be about.

See ya!