Why Fans Think Niall Horan’s New Album Is About Hailee Steinfeld

Niall Horan fans think that his ex Hailee Steinfeld inspired his new album Heartbreak Weather—and they might be on to something.

By emily belfiore Mar 13, 2020 2:57 PMTags
Watch: Did Hailee Steinfeld and Niall Horan Split?

Niall Horan's fans might be on to something. 

On Friday, the "Nice To Meet Ya" singer released his second studio album Heartbreak Weather—and fans couldn't help but wonder if his ex Hailee Steinfeld inspired it.

Taking to Twitter to express their excitement over Niall's new album, one fan pointed out that their split provided the perfect inspiration, writing, "Damn hailee messed up Niall good but it made for a fantastic album, PROTECT NIALL JEEZ #HeartbreakWeather."

In fact, many Niall Nation members felt that his song "Black and White," where the 26-year-old sings promises his love forever and fantasizes about their wedding day, was the song that really channels their unexpected breakup. One fan tweeted, "BLACK AND WHITE IS SO HEARTBREAKING I WANNA FIGHT HAILEE FOR HURTING NIALL."

Back in February 2018, the One Direction boy-bander and the Pitch Perfect 2 star first sparked romance rumors after being spotted out and about together. Then, a source close to the couple described the relationship as "casual" between the two musicians.

Watch
Hailee Steinfeld Denies Throwing Shade at Ex Niall Horan

After some PDA-filled outings together, the pair called it quits in December, crediting their busy schedules with keeping them apart. "Hailee and Niall were going strong over the summer but split a few months ago and have been trying to keep it low-key," a source close to Hailee told E! News at the time. "They really tried to make it work. It definitely was 'young love.'"

Based on Niall's album title and how recent his and Hailee's split was, fans aren't totally wrong with their assumptions. Before releasing Heartbreak Weather, Niall sat down with Jimmy Fallon and revealed that a recent heartbreak had fueled his new body of work. 

"There's all these different sides to a breakup. It's not all sad, all the time," he said during his visit to The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. "When you break up with someone, it's not just like, I'm sitting at a window. I'm looking out. I'm feeling sorry for myself. It's raining against that window. Sometimes you're like out on the town, throwing some shapes and you write songs like 'Nice To Meet Ya!'"

Jeff Kravitz/AMA2017/FilmMagic for dcp

Niall added, "On this album, I just kind of wanted to write a nice mix of the ups and downs of that."

It appears that Hailee also harnessed her heartbreak for her new single "Wrong Direction," which fans of the former couple noticed made a reference to Niall's boy band days. After seeing the speculation that the title created, Hailee set the record straight on her rumored "Niall diss track," as one fan put it.

"No hidden messages my loves," she tweeted with a heart emoji. "Just reposted an interesting read that I'm sure some of y'all can relate to. Nothing but love!"