Inside Niall Horan’s Folky, Intimate ‘Flicker’ Album Release Party

Niall Horan had “no master plan” when it came to releasing a solo album, but man are we glad he did. The One Direction alum celebrated the release of his solo studio album, Flicker, with a live one-hour long concert at the iHeartRadio theater in Los Angeles on Friday, October 20, and transported us into what we'd imagine his living room in Lauren Canyon to be like.

Niall, who kept things casual and cool in jeans, a T-shirt and flannel, kicked off the intimate event with a performance of “This Town,” his first-ever solo track.

“I wanted to let people know I was still doing stuff,” Niall told host JoJo Wright about why he decided to release “This Town” as his first single. “There was no real master plan behind it. ... I m sure you guys will remember, I just tweeted the link to it one night.”

As fans well remember, Niall dropped the track in September 2016 shortly after revealing he’d also signed to Capitol Records after One Direction announced their extended hiatus in August 2015. 

“[I feel] very anxious,” Niall admitted to JoJo. “I have been sitting on some of these songs for a long time.”

Niall then performed for the first time live new track “On the Loose.” Fans (mostly young, energetic females) sung along to the jam, proving their dedication in knowing the words just hours after Flicker’s release. After performing his second single “Too Much to Ask” — and revealing that he lives with his cousin who just so happens to heavily weigh in on which tracks he should keep or delete — Niall told JoJo that he titled the album Flicker because recording the title track was “a real poignant moment“ for him.

“‘Flicker’ means a lot to me,” Niall shared. “It’s one of those career songs to me — it stands out.“

The emotional and raw title track also helped Niall navigate the overall sound of the album, which he previously revealed is heavily influenced by his idols including The Eagles and Fleetwood Mac.


“I knew musically what I wanted it to sound like,” Niall shared of mega hit “Slow Hands.” “There aren’t a lot of people my age who are [creating this sound right now.]”

During his performance of “Slow Hands,” Niall let the fans chime in and got into the groove of the show, finishing the live radio portion.

“Are we still live on the website?” Niall genuinely (and adorably) asked the crowd, referring to the live stream on YouTube, before performing his duet song with Maren Morris "Seeing Blind.”

Niall also performed “Paper Houses” and “You & Me,” and before kicking off “Fire Away,” he acknowledged the crowd again, admitting that he’d gone into a trance. 

“I should probably talk to the people,” he said, jokingly addressing the intimate group of 300 or so. “Hello, people! I was getting into the swing of things. I forgot there were people in front of me. You’re a very nice crowd … This is the first [Flicker] show I’ve done where you actually might know the words. … 90 percent of the time no one knows a word I’m saying, including myself.“

Niall then shared that track "Since We’re Alone” came after a long day of writer's block. 

"‘Since We’re Alone’ was written really randomly,” he explained. “I was working with Greg Kurstin. … He’s won Grammys with Adele and everyone and just finished Foo Fighters’ album ... and to get in the room with him personally was a big task ... we tried to write all day and you have those days where ... nothing is coming out of it. … I had 15 minutes to go on and he just started playing chords and I said, ‘Wait, stick on that’ and I just started rambling on and then about 4 or 5 hours later I checked my emails and he’d made a track for me ... I ended up writing the song off the back of it to those melodies.”

Niall concluded the show by performing “Mirrors” — a track he wrote for girls and women who may struggle with insecurities — and then his own beer-chugging anthem “On My Own.”

“If this song doesn’t make you want to go drinking afterward …” Niall exclaimed, embracing his final moments on the iHeartRadio stage. 

In true rockstar (and crush-worthy One Direction) style, Niall ended the evening by tossing his guitar picks into the crowd as souvenirs for those lucky enough to catch one.

SET LIST:

“This Town”

“On The Loose”

“Too Much Too Ask”

“Flicker”

“Slow Hands”

“Seeing Blind”

“Paper Houses”

“You & Me”

“Fire Away”

“Since We’re Alone”

“Mirrors”

“On My Own”

Watch more performance videos below:

Niall Horan Performs "Too Much to Ask"
Niall Horan Performs "Slow Hands"
Niall Horan Performs "This Town"

Sponsored Content

Sponsored Content