One Direction separated almost six years ago. Since the band broke up, the five members have focussed on their own solo music. Harry Styles has, without a doubt, been the most successful in his endeavours, winning a few Grammy Awards and a number-one album along the way.

Ahead of the release of his third solo album, Harry’s House, Styles has looked back on being in One Direction, and the mental strain he went through during the hard work.

Styles recently opened up about how he is now “okay with protecting his boundaries” after living in the public eye for so long.

After One Direction were formed on ITV’s talent show The X Factor, the quintet hit the road and began releasing albums. Before long, they were some of the most popular artists on the planet, and could not even go out in public alone. But, behind all the fame and fortune, the band members found it difficult to live normal lives.

“I kind of emotionally coasted,” Styles confessed. “I didn’t really feel anything. And we’d go through real highs in the band and stuff, and it would always just feel like a relief.”

Styles noted how he didn’t celebrate the band’s success, even when they achieved five number-one albums and four number-one singles.

Instead, the 28-year-old star would think: “Oh, we didn’t fail. That feels like a massive relief.”

Now, Styles feels he has opened the door to his enjoyment of the band through therapy. He explained: “I never really felt like I celebrated anything. And I had a great time! Like, truly.”

READ MORE: Harry Styles ‘I have deep love for my One Direction bandmates’

Styles was asked by Apple Music 1’s Zane Lowe: “Do you feel like that is a bond that can’t be broken?” He replied: “I think there is very much a respect between all of us, if like, we did something together. And that is something that you can’t really undo. And you know, it’s like a very deep love for each other, I think.”

The star also spoke candidly about how the instant fame he and the rest of the band went through was so unique.

Styles said: “I look at people who kind of went through some version of what we went through, but on their own. I’m like… I can’t imagine having done that, really.”

He also praised his bandmates, adding: “I feel really lucky that we always had each other to be this unit that felt like you could keep each other in check and you could just have someone else who gets it. It’s impossible to not – at times I think everyone experiences this – feel like: ‘Oh, everyone else is on the other side of the glass and I’m on this side of the glass, and no one really gets it.’ And I think having that [support] is kind of priceless.”

Harry Styles – Harry’s House is due for release tomorrow.

SOURCE