The new pop-band, mainly located in the United Kingdom, erupted onto the music scene shortly after appearing on the British version of X-Factor. Although the five boys did not win first place on the singing show, they landed a record deal with SYCO Music, a joint venture of Simon Cowell and Sony Music Group, shortly after the competition ended.

Liam Payne, Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan have not only stolen many hearts from girls all over the world, but they have also dominated the music charts in the United Kingdom, Australia, Belgium, Ireland, The Netherlands, Norway, Scotland and Sweden.

Their debut album, Up All Night, peaked at number one in Sweden, number two in the UK and Scotland and third in Ireland. Their debut single, “What Makes You Beautiful”, topped the charts in the UK, Scotland, and Ireland.

One Direction wrote and composed the album’s 13 songs and two bonus tracks with the help of singers Kelly Clarkson and British band McFly’s lead singer, Tom Fletcher and Ed Sheeran. The popular powerful pop anthems consist of feel-good, corny lyrics that make girls all over the world gush with love for the band.

According to Female First, a British celebrity gossip and lifestyle magazine, the pop band is hoping to “crack the US music industry” soon.

To help bring One Direction to the United States, the pop band has created all sorts of challenges for fans to participate in. They are using every social media outlet, including YouTube, Twitter and Facebook, to let the world know of their existence.

As if their music wasn’t enough, One Direction has male Barbie dolls modeled after them, they have performed at various shows including Red or Black? and Alan Carr: Chatty Man and the Jingle Bell Ball, but most importantly they have won the hearts of so many people, particularly the female specimens, across the globe.

If students are looking for a new obsession, look no further, Liam, Harry, Louis, Niall and Zayn have come to the rescue.

Joe Mach, Dave Trichter, Scott Robinson, Coop Cooper and Evan Anderson, also known as Hotspur, are a local talent poised on the brink of national recognition. The rock band’s popularity is steadily increasing with the recent release of their second full-length album, You Should Know Better By Now.

“If I could attribute our success to anything, it is definitely the enthusiasm and loyalty of our fans,” Robinson said.

Four of the five Hotspur members grew up in Montgomery County and attended local high schools including Paint Branch, Good Counsel and Blake. Mach, Trichter and Robinson all met in college and formed their first band. They performed together for a while, but once they graduated, they decided to take it to the next level, and Hotspur was born. The name “Hotspur” comes from a character in the Shakespeare play, Henry IV.

“We thought long and hard about band names,” Robinson said.  “It was not easy, but eventually we stumbled upon it.”

Hotspur writes all their own songs, which gives their music an original and personal vibe. The band felt inspired by the music they grew up with, which in turn motivated them to become musicians.

“For some people, [music] just creates a spark in you, and we want to create that spark in other people,” Robinson said.

One of the greatest highlights of Hotspur’s journey so far was seeing the video for their song, “Chandelier” played on MTVu.  According to the bands website, after a nationwide fan vote, Hotspur won MTV’s program, “The Freshmen,” for their “Chandelier” video in October 2009. Among their other achievements, Hotspur was nominated “Best New Artist” and “Best Songwriter” by the Washington Area Music Association, and have won Taco Bell’s “Feed the Beat” program.

“I don’t think we’ve really had any one thing that has gotten us to where we are,” Robinson said.  “It has just been a lot of hard work, strategic decisions and we’ve had a lot of help along the way from a lot of different people.”

Hotspur’s music is never far away. Their songs and albums can be found on iTunes or fans can go to hotspurmusic.com to listen to songs from their latest album. Their albums are also sold in Hot Topic stores, where Hotspur has recently performed.

“I first heard them at their concert in Hot Topic,” freshman Lauren Price said, who saw Hotspur perform in Montgomery Mall. “Their music puts me in a good mood.”

Hotspur headlined at the 9:30 Club Feb. 19, and performed on Feb. 20 at the Vibe Lounge. The band is writing new music and plans to tour in the spring.

“We plan to make a lot of new friends, new music, see new parts of the world and spread the Hotspur love,” Robinson said.