Louis Tomlinson, former member of One Direction, is making pop-punk cool again with his latest single “We Made It.” Louis has finally released a new single from his upcoming (and highly anticipated) first album since One Direction announced their hiatus in 2016. Despite personal tragedies, Louis has been working on his first album, Walls, for the past three years. Many fans (like me!) have been at the edge of their seats as he slowly released single by single with no news of a current album.
“We Made It,” released on October 24, was written by Louis and is the second single off his upcoming album. Teased earlier in 2018, the song has obvious pop-punk influence as Louis has stated previously that he wanted a sound to fit the music he listened to growing up, citing inspiration from bands like Oasis and Green Day. The electric guitar and Tomlinson’s longing voice give a nostalgic feel to the record and Tomlinson hits the point home as he ties it together with a catchy bass.
The song reminisces on Tomlinson’s time in One Direction citing “singing something pop-y on the same four chords” while completing it with an ode to the fans. Louis recently revealed with the release of “We Made It” that he finally feels like he is making music that fits him as a person and artist. Although he has experimented with different sounds with collaborations like “Just Hold On” with Steve Aoki and “Back to You” with Bebe Rexha, Louis admits that he is done with collaborations and wants to release his own music with his own sound.
“We Made It” is comfortable and familiar. While Louis ties his inspiration to pop-punk bands of the ’90s and early ’00s, he managed to make the sound his own and gives it a feel that caters to his fans from the One Direction days. Besides sound, the lyrics on “We Made It” are simple but effective in creating a sobering mood that almost makes you feel sentimental for something that may have never happened.
His dedication to his fans and brutal honesty with his lyrics — did you know he co-wrote 37 songs in One Direction? — are what makes him such a valuable, one-of-a-kind artist. As a solo artist, Louis has already garnered a billion streams and was ranked No. 5 on Billboard’s emerging artists of 2018 without even releasing an album. Fans all around the world are waiting patiently for him to take on the pop-punk music scene along with exceeding radio hits.
Walls will be out on Jan. 31, 2020; but in the meantime, we’ll just keep streaming “We Made It” on repeat!