KUALA LUMPUR, October 18 - It’s a dark period of mourning for fans of famous British boy band, One Direction following the death of one of its former members, Liam Payne.

The pop star who died at age 31 after plunging from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires, spent more than half his life in the public eye as a member of one of the world’s most successful boy bands.

In tribute to the memory of Payne, and the impact of One Direction — as well as to educate those who are unfamiliar with their music, here’s why One Direction or also known as 1D were global pop icons of the early 2010s.

Who are One Direction?

Best known for their good looks, heavenly voices and catchy chart-topping tunes, One Direction was initially made up of five members which included Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik.

According to Deadline, the band was formed in 2010 by famous English TV personality and reality singing show judge, Simon Cowell on The X-Factor UK — who hand-picked all five members that auditioned as solo acts — and give them a chance to get the break together as a pop group.

The decision led the boys to global stardom topping the charts and selling out arenas and stadiums worldwide.

Despite their immense success since their debut, things went south for the boy band especially after Malik decided to leave the group in 2015 in the midst of their world tourr, and the rest of them followed suit in 2016, announcing that 1D were going on an indefinite hiatus.

It was later reported that Malik’s exit was because he wanted to get ahead of the break-up and wanted to be the first to make a solo career, while also admitting that there were tensions between the members due to fame and scrutiny.

Following their disbandment, One Direction members went on their own ways as each embarked on solo careers.

Global pop icons

For those who were around in the early 2010s, it's safe to say that you might have heard at least one song by the boy band, whether voluntarily or involuntarily.

One Direction enjoyed global fame and had legions of screaming fans during their six-year domination, selling more than 70 million copies of their five albums.

They have gone on four world tours and won nearly 200 awards, including being named the Global Recording Artist of 2013 in recognition of their international popularity across downloads, physical format sales and streaming services by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI).

Four of their five albums Up All Night and Take Me Home from 2012; Midnight Memories (2013); and FOUR (2014) topped the Billboard 200 while Made in the A.M.. peaked at No. 2.

They even had their own documentary back in 2013 titled One Direction: This is Us which has scored an audience rating of 79 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes.

Where to Start with One Direction?

One Direction had a total of five albums in their discography with their best selling album being the 2012’s Take Me Home according to bestsellingalbums.org with the album garnering over US$6.3 million (RM27.14 million) in sales.

For those interested in diving into One Direction, here are our suggestions: