On 25 March 2016, One Direction announced an indefinite hiatus to embark on solo projects. Niall Horan said during that hiatus, the group would "take a break, write some new music and go our separate ways for a while".
In July 2016, One Direction's former record label, Syco Music, released the group's fifth album, Made in the A.M., the final record of the group's five-album deal with the label. The group made no promotional appearances for the album, and it became their first album not to debut at number one in the United States.
In early 2017, Louis Tomlinson's mother, Johannah, died of leukemia at the age of 43. Tomlinson later released the song "Just Hold On", a collaboration with Steve Aoki, as a tribute to his mother.
In January 2018, Liam Payne announced that his debut solo album, LP1, would be released in December of that year. However, the album was scrapped and Payne left Syco Music in 2019. Payne later released his first extended play, First Time, in August 2019.
In March 2018, Harry Styles released his self-titled debut solo album. The album debuted at number one in the United States and the United Kingdom, and was the best-selling album worldwide in 2017. Styles later released his second album, Fine Line, in December 2019, which also debuted at number one in the United States and the United Kingdom.
In October 2018, Niall Horan released his debut solo album, Flicker. The album debuted at number one in the United States, Ireland, and Australia. Horan later released his second album, Heartbreak Weather, in March 2020, which debuted at number one in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
In December 2019, Louis Tomlinson released his debut solo album, Walls. The album debuted at number four in the United Kingdom, and at number nine in the United States.
On 13 February 2020, One Direction's former record label, Syco Music, announced that the group would be releasing a 10th anniversary edition of their debut album, Up All Night, on 13 November 2020. The edition included the original album, as well as B-sides, live recordings, and acoustic versions of songs from the album.