1D 'To Go Separate Ways' Next Year

(MENAFN- Arab Times) British pop phenomenon One Direction (1D) are to take an indefinite break from next year, according to a media report Monday which has left fans devastated. The four-piece boyband will separate for at least a year from March to pursue solo projects, according to The Sun newspaper, citing a "1D source".

The band, who enjoy a massive global teenage following, did not comment when contacted by AFP and have not commented on the tabloid report on their various Twitter accounts. "The guys have been together for five years, which is an incredible run for any boyband," said The Sun's source.

"They fully deserve to have at least a year to work on their own projects. There is absolutely no bad blood between them and they are all 100 percent behind the decision. "It is definitely not a split and they fully intend to get back together at some time in the future." Fans took to social media to express their shock, with Twitter user Lexie Noel posting that "I've never cried harder". Bee @hellobee added: "What is this news about One Direction splitting up Im Dying in the Grocery Store OMG".

Advice

Battle-hardened fans offered advice to those going through their first boy-band split. "It's ok One Direction fans, I went through this with Take That & Boyzone," wrote Twitter user @LisforLia. "You may feel like your heart is in a blender, but you can do this."

The band is due to release its fifth album before Christmas, and fulfil promotional commitments by the end of February, the report said.

There is no tour scheduled for the new album.

One Direction's last scheduled concerts are at the Sheffield Arena in northern England on Oct 29, 30, 31.

They are currently touring North America and are due to perform in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on Tuesday.

Put together for a British television singing contest in 2010, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson swiftly developed a giant, fiercely loyal following of young girls worldwide.

The chart-toppers have sold more than 50 million records around the globe.

Malik quit the band in March, shortly after being signed off with stress.

"I am leaving because I want to be a normal 22-year-old who is able to relax and have some private time out of the spotlight," he said at the time.

The Sun's report said the split would have happened regardless of Malik's departure.

The Sunday Times newspaper's Rich List 2015 reckoned the band members were worth £25 million each.

A spokesman for One Direction is declining to comment on a report that the chart-topping boy band will take an indefinite break starting next March.

Publicist Simon Jones says he won't comment on "speculation."

The Sun newspaper reported Monday that band members would go separate ways after finishing a tour this autumn and promoting their fifth album.

One Direction formed in 2010 after five teenagers € Tomlinson, Styles, Payne, Horan and Malik € auditioned individually for the British TV talent show "The X Factor." Simon Cowell had the idea of putting them together as a boy band.

Speculation about a split grew after Malik quit the group earlier this year.

The members of the boyband One Direction are to go their separate ways - but promise they'll reunite after a year or so.

"The guys have been together for five years, which is an incredible run for any boyband," a source told The Sun newspaper. "They fully deserve to have at least a year to work on their own projects. There is absolutely no bad blood between them and they are all 100% behind the decision."

The members of the band will start their break in March after their fifth studio album is released, and there will be no tour to promote that album. However, the source insisted the separation was temporary. "It is definitely not a split and they fully intend to get back together at some time in the future," the source said.

The source said that the other members of the band had already been thinking about disbanding before Malik's move. "This was the plan with or without Zayn. In fact, the band have been making amazing music and been incredibly happy without Zayn," the insider said. "Of course they would have preferred that he had stayed in the band, but they would have taken this extended hiatus even if he hadn't left."

The Sun's Dan Wootton, who broke the story, said that the break may allow Styles to launch a movie acting career and Tomlinson to take on TV assignments. "After five years together they're hungry to try something else," Wootton told Sky News. "There is a lot of demand for Harry Styles to be a big solo artist and launch a Hollywood acting career, and there is a lot of speculation that Louis Tomlinson will join the 'X Factor' judging panel next year. Liam Payne and Niall Noran are interesting in pursuing their song writing careers."

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LOS ANGELES: Rapper Wiz Khalifa was handcuffed and then released by US Customs officers after refusing to stop riding his hoverboard at Los Angeles International Airport, authorities said on Sunday.

A video on Khalifa's Instagram site shows three US Customs and Border Protection officers pinning Khalifa to the floor on Saturday and telling him to quit resisting.

"I am not resisting, sir," Khalifa, 27, says in the video.

In a separate video on his Twitter site, Khalifa is shown standing handcuffed with the officers.

"I didn't do nothing," Khalifa tells them. "What you want to do? Put me in jail because I didn't listen to what you say?"

Jaime Ruiz, a US Customs and Border Protection spokesman, said Khalifa was handcuffed but not arrested. Ruiz said travelers are treated with respect by officers, but that they must follow orders for their own safety and those of others. Khalifa failed to do so, he said.

Khalifa, whose real name is Cameron Jibril Thomaz, is a prominent rap artist with numerous hit songs including "See You Again," which was No. 1 for more than two months this year on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Khalifa said on Twitter he was returning to the United States from a trip to France and Finland.

On Twitter, Khalifa said he came from a generation that rode hoverboards, which resemble skateboards as they hover above the ground.

LOS ANGELES: Two girls suffered minor injuries after rapper Fetty Wap jumped off stage and into the crowd at the Billboard Hot 100 festival on Long Island.

Newsday reports the girls became trapped under a fence Sunday afternoon when the crowd rushed the stage.

Wap is one of two dozen artists performing at the Nikon at Jones Beach Theatre. Others include Justin Bieber, Nicki Minaj and Lil Wayne.

More than 1,000 fans were in the audience as a group pushed forward to take photos and video of the entertainer.

The newspaper says the girls were treated by medics backstage.

Wap returned to the stage minutes later and apologized before continuing with the performance.

Representatives for Wap, whose real name is Freddy Maxwell, did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.