Every One Direction Video, Ranked

In the early 2000s, the boy band world was pretty quiet; the Backstreet Boys were still around, but albums were further apart, *NSYNC broke up, and Nick Lachey was more reality TV star than boy band member. Territory and airspace that had formerly belonged to boy bands was claimed by pop punk acts like Good Charlotte, Sum-41, and Yellowcard. A few Disney and Nickelodeon-based acts (the Jonas Brothers, Big Time Rush) saw a decent amount of success, but weren’t really boy bands as we once knew them.

Enter British boy band One Direction, a Simon Cowell-crafted amalgamation of five male vocalists competing on UK’s The X-Factor. The boys were a fan favorite and put up a good fight, but ultimately came in second place…like it matters. They quickly became the biggest boy band in recent pop culture history, ushering in the new boy band era. Social media put fans closer to the boys than ever before–for better and for worse. After four intense years of touring and making albums on the road, they went on hiatus early this year. While we all wait for their return, why don’t we rank their music videos?

17. “YOU & I” (2014)

The concept is straight up boring: the guys wear the same sweater and morph into each other while they walk down a pier. I spend way too much time watching teen sci-fi shows (read: Roswell) to not find shapeshifting creepy.

16. “STEAL MY GIRL” (2014)

The band goes to meet Danny DeVito in order to “bring life to the desert.” Zayn is matched up with sumo wrestlers, Niall dances with African performers (hiiiiii cultural appropriation), Louis spends time with a monkey, Liam leads a marching band on top of a cage, and Harry wears a horrifying leopard print duster. They all come together to dance and sing in the rain at the end. I just…don’t even know.

15. “MORE THAN THIS” (2012)

This one is straight performance video with footage taken from the Up All Night tour. Poorly dubbed, because it’s a live performance with a recorded track over it.

14. “GOTTA BE YOU” (2011)

“Gotta Be You” truly challenges One Direction to adopt the boy band angst of yore. It’s a lot of wandering around in upstate New York with a whole lot of feelings. And sweaters. Seriously, there’s a whole lot of yarn here. This is also the last time we see a member of One Direction having a ~moment~ with a girl, as there is a certain subset of Directioners that will use social media to go after video extras. Welcome to the new norm, brought to you by the social media age!

13. “LITTLE THINGS” (2012)

This video features One Direction performing this Ed Sheeran-penned ballad in a recording studio. Their staring into the camera makes things a little uncomfortable, but the video isn’t poorly shot. It’s more serious in tone for a more serious song, but they can’t hold it the whole time–during the last chorus, Zayn sits there and pokes Harry in the side of the face while he’s singing his lines.

12. “STORY OF MY LIFE” (2013)

This video opens with the band surrounded by photos of childhood memories, some of which they reenact for their video. They move throughout the photo frame while their companions stay completely still, making it look slightly like their companions are dead. In Louis’s case, two of them actually do disappear for the present photo, which is pretty sad. It’s an interesting concept for a video, though one that has nearly nothing to do with the lyrics.

11. “WHAT MAKES YOU BEAUTIFUL” (2011)

With this first video, the world (beyond the British version of The X-Factor) was introduced One Direction. Wave goodbye to synchronized group dances, wave hello to semi-synchronized jumping around. This video is the epitome of summer fun; shot in California, it follows the boys as they run around in the ocean, hang out with girls around a bonfire, and in Harry’s case, sing awkwardly into the mouth of one of those girls. As the debut video for a British boy band, it’s interesting to see a video with distinct American vibes.

10. “NIGHT CHANGES” (2014)

“Night Changes” is basically One Direction self-insert fanfiction. You get to be on a date with each member of the band…and watch as each date goes horribly wrong! Zayn takes you to a nice dinner, only to get attacked with spaghetti by your cuckolded boyfriend. Harry takes you skating and ends up hurting himself. Liam brings you to a carnival and ends up puking in your hat. Louis takes you for a drive, only to get pulled over by the police and arrested. Poor Niall is playing board games with you when he ends up lighting his arm on fire and spilling wine in your lap. The staring starts off uncomfortable, the finished product is pretty hilarious.

9. “ONE WAY OR ANOTHER (TEENAGE KICKS)” (2013)

One Direction recorded this mash-up cover – of Blondie’s 1979 hit “One Way or Another” and The Undertones’ 1978 power pop classic “Teenage Kicks” — for Comic Relief/Red Nose Day in 2013. They opted to shoot the video themselves rather than spend a ton of money doing a studio one. The video features the band on location in London, New York, Japan and volunteering in Africa. Notable highlights include them dancing outside of 10 Downing Street and hugging David Cameron.

8. “HISTORY” (2016)

“History” came out just as the band’s hiatus started. The video shows the guys performing in front of a brick wall interspersed between clips that portray the band’s history.

7. “MIDNIGHT MEMORIES” (2014)

One Direction has a grand old time hanging at a party, belting their song at a kebab place, racing each other on electric scooters, and stealing a boat, all to get to the top of Tower Bridge. Very funny, very British.

6. “LIVE WHILE WE’RE YOUNG” (2012)

The first single off of their sophomore album Take Me Home shows a slightly wilder, less structured side of One Direction. The shift in image was apt for the slightly racier content (“Tonight let’s get some/And live while we’re young”) and looks like more fun than their earlier. It’s a little like “One Thing,” only less buttoned up.

5. “ONE THING” (2012)

One Direction, looking dapper in London! The “One Thing” video embraced their humor, energy and chemistry and is a throwback to the antics of bands like the Beatles and the Monkees. This video was the first that was more in line with their personalities, not that of 90s boy bands.

4. “PERFECT” (2015)

Another black and white performance video, only this time in a hotel instead of a recording studio. The video shows them dicking around in the lobbies as well as during quieter times in their rooms, closing with a rooftop performance. Sophie Muller’s video direction somehow makes a simple performance video stand out more than it normally might have among their funnier videos.

3. “DRAG ME DOWN” (2015)

The first video after Zayn left the group was kind of a mic drop in song message and video. The concept is simple and amazing: they train to be astronauts. NASA, YOU GUYS. I’m just saying, watch this video, then watch Zayn’s terrible “Pillowtalk” video. Tell me who won.

2. “KISS YOU” (2013)

The “Kiss You” video is another throwback, with One Direction reenacting videos from people like Elvis Presley (“Jailhouse Rock” specifically), the Beach Boys, and the Monkees on a soundstage for a photo shoot. They dress up in ski gear, in bathing suits to surf, in Elvis’s version of a jail uniform, and as sailors and generally dick around. It’s a fun video that showcases how comfortable they are with one another.

1.  “BEST SONG EVER” (2013)

One Direction’s first story video is written by British comedian (and future Late Late Show host) James Corden and producer/director Ben Winston. The guys play both themselves and various personalities at a record label–Niall and Louis are executives, Zayn is a lady secretary, Harry is their nerdy marketing consultant, and Liam is their flamboyant choreographer. After being pitched a ridiculous ‘90s makeover, One Direction wreaks havoc all over the office, trashing the place and coordinating a ridiculous, quirky dance routine with some of the employees. The band’s commitment to comedy really sells this video–it looks effortless and like a ton of fun to shoot.

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