1D celebrates 10-year anniversary with new site and lots of nostalgia

It's hard to believe that it’s been a decade since Simon Cowell assembled one of the most popular boy bands of a generation and yet here we are as One Direction officially turns 10 years old. And to celebrate the occasion, the band has released a smorgasbord of new content for those tried and true fans who have stuck with them over the years.Members Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Liam Payne and Louis Tomlinson banded together once again to launch the highly-anticipated interactive website on July 23, exactly 10 years to the day that they were put together by the notoriously cranky X Factor U.K. judge. On the site (which crashed shortly after its launch due to high traffic and was still down at the time of publication), users can find lots of new videos, artwork, and other content that goes through the memorable ups (Billboard’s New Artist of the Year!) and downs (their 2016 breakup). Fans can also curate their own mixtape playlists of all their favourite 1D ditties. The guys, meanwhile, were all over social media to celebrate the milestone in their own ways.[video_embed id='1976070']RELATED: Niall Horan performs 'Black and White' from his new album 'Heartbreak Weather'[/video_embed]“I’ve been struggling to put into words how grateful I am for everything that’s happened over the last ten years. I’ve seen things and places that I’d only ever dreamt of when I was growing up,” Styles shared on Twitter. “To the boys, I love you so much, and I couldn’t be prouder of everything we achieved together. Here’s to ten.”

when I met these four gents there was no way I thought we would go on to do what we did. So many unbelievable memories we shared together. We felt the adoration of millions from around the planet on a daily basis and it was mind blowing. pic.twitter.com/rHeGL8rY7z

— Niall Horan (@NiallOfficial) July 23, 2020

“Thanks to everyone that’s supported us over the years and thanks to the boys for sharing this with me,” Payne wrote. “Feeling pretty emotional today. 10 years!! Spent the morning watching old interviews and performances,” Tomlinson added. “Just wanted to send a massive thank you to ALL of my band mates. What we did together was incredible.” Malik was the only member who didn’t share his thoughts online.Considering this wasn’t exactly the reunion the band had in mind before the coronavirus pandemic put a halt to large gatherings around the globe, it seems like the guys have really come through for fans. And, because a website wasn’t enough to truly celebrate the entire story of their musical lives, the group also dropped a  YouTube celebration video that acknowledges the anniversary. Oh, need more?How about the four new EPs that they also dropped on Spotify, which feature B-sides, remixes, and live recordings? Add in the fact that all of the music streamers (aka Spotify, Apple and more) have updated their 1D playlists and created even more brand new ones, and there’s almost enough content to last fans for another 10 years. Almost. The releases still aren’t exactly the band getting back together, after all.[video_embed id='5519251745001']RELATED: Harry Styles reveals grueling filming conditions for 'Dunkirk'[/video_embed]Let’s not forget that the former Fab Five is now down to four ever since Zayn quit the group in 2015. Or that the other four have been pursuing solo projects since 2016. Still, the fact that the guys (minus dad-to-be Malik) have been reconnecting and able to properly organize so many festivities to coincide with their 10th anniversary can only be a good sign, as is the fact that they’re all following Zayn on social media again. “There’s a number of different things that we are all working on to try and make happen, and people are forwarding emails around,” Payne told The Sun in April. “But more than anything it’s just been a real good time for us to connect together again.”It seems like the band is ready to reconnect with fans once again as well. The group officially relaunched its Twitter and Instagram pages on July 22 for the first time since 2018 in anticipation of the new content, sharing links and retweeting the bandmembers as they reminisced. “Tomorrow!” the band wrote on Twitter. “You and me got a whole lot of history.”Payne also used the anniversary as an opportunity to walk down memory lane with Capitol Breakfast’s Roman Kemp. “It was crazy to be involved with this group of really rowdy boys, for me, I’d never really had that many loud—like, all my friends are quite quiet—but then you’d put Louis and Zayn together in a room and it used to go off all the time,” he recalled in a new interview. “I remember being in hotel rooms and plates were being thrown out the window. It was a crazy, crazy time and a lot to get used to…I was a bit too grown up in that sense, I needed to grow down and just have a bit of fun.”During the five full years that all the guys were together (2010-2015 to be exact), One Direction released five albums, toured the world four times, and amassed plenty of awards and passionate fans along the way. Since their retirement in 2015, the guys have each had pretty notable solo careers (admit it: Styles' summery tune “Watermelon Sugar” is still in your head) as they pursued their own music, acting and hosting gigs, and even revelation-filled memoirs. Whether this all means they’re gearing up for a comeback or something else remains a mystery, but fans can only hope.[video_embed id='1995719']BEFORE YOU GO: OVO Sound R&B group dvsn perform 'No Good'[/video_embed]