Niall Horan has teased exciting plans for 2023.
The former One Direction star delighted fans on Thursday evening, when he announced he would be releasing new music in the new year.
The 29-year-old is set to release his third studio album, following the immense success of Flicker (2017) and Heartbreak Weather (2020).
Speaking in a surprise video uploaded to social media, Niall said: “Hello, lovers! It’s Niall here. It’s been a while – which I know you’re very aware of. But I just wanted to give you an update as to what’s going on. I’m back.”
“I’ve got new music coming in the new year that I’m really, really proud of. I appreciate you being so patient with me while I’ve done it.”
Although he hasn’t released new music this year, the 29-year-old has had his fair share of exciting projects.
He was recently announced as part of the judging panel for the upcoming season of The Voice US, and also fronted a documentary alongside Lewis Capaldi.
Titled Niall Horan’s Homecoming: The Road to Mullingar, the show saw the two globally recognised musicians head on a road trip around Ireland, before surprising fans in Niall’s hometown of Mullingar.
Niall continued: “I’m shooting The Voice [US] at the moment, which airs next year, and we go live in May.”
“I have a whole new album too and something that I’ve wanted to do forever is festivals and I’ve never really had the opportunity to do it.”
“So, I think we will be announcing some festivals in the next couple of days and weeks and months for next year, which I’m really excited about.”
“I can’t wait to get back on the road and see you guys all over the world and have a lot of fun. So, can’t wait to see you soon. I love you very much – see you in the New Year,” Niall finished.
Niall and Lewis’ documentary, which aired earlier this month, was filmed in collaboration with Guinness and was a huge hit with viewers.
However, some people criticized Guinness for sponsoring the documentary when Niall has such a young fan base.
The Mullingar native’s mum Maura spoke to Joe Duffy on Liveline on last week, where she responded to the backlash against the documentary.
@niallhoranLOVERS. I GOT NEWS FOR YA
When asked about the Guinness Niall drank in the documentary, Maura insisted: “It was zero [non-alcoholic]… I can only speak for the part where he was in Mullingar and he was in the pub. I was there and Guinness 0.0 was given.”
She added: “He does drink. I think he’s partial to a good pint of Guinness.”
Addressing the backlash, Maura said: “People are entitled to their opinion. When I heard [the documentary] was coming on, I couldn’t wait to see Niall and Lewis. I watched the show the other night and it didn’t come into my head at all, I was just laughing at the two of them.”
“I know that they visited [the] Guinness [Storehouse], but the fact that they were sitting with glasses or pints of Guinness in their hands, that didn’t register with me.”
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