Niall Horan has no new music in the pipeline

Niall Horan isn’t planning a solo career just yet.

The Irish charmer has been focusing his attention on golf management since One Direction went on hiatus in January (16). Rumours have started to circulate that he’ll soon be releasing new music, making him the first One Direction member to do so, but he says there’s no plans for that yet.

“I’ve been in the studio writing bits and pieces. Nothing is really in the pipeline in particular, just keeping the mind ticking over and doing what I like,” he admitted to Britain’s Hello! magazine. “I’ve always been into the writing and trying out different things musically. I’ve made relationships with a few writers over the years so it’s been good calling them up saying, ‘Do you want to write?’ then popping into the studio. I haven’t done much, about five sessions maybe. I’ve just been chilling out.”

While he admits he “kind of misses” boyband life, the 22-year-old is enjoying being his own boss, and especially likes the long lie ins.

He’s still in regular contact with his bandmates, calling Harry Styles' move into acting “great” and trying to make plans to finally meet Louis Tomlinson’s baby son Freddie.

As for Liam Payne, 22, and his new romance with British popstar-turned-TV personality Cheryl, 32, Niall teases he has the inside scoop.

“There’s a little bit of a story behind it but I won’t be telling you that,” he grinned. “She’s a great girl, really fun. He’s a top man, and one of my best friends. She seems happy, he’s happy, so I’m happy for them.”

Liam got into trouble with fans when he failed to support Sunday’s (05Jun16) charity Soccer Aid match, where Louis and Niall were both playing for Unicef. In a video uploaded to Liam’s Twitter he hinted that instead of cheering the boys on he was at home with Cheryl, which did not go down well with One Direction fans.