Project No Control
| Event | |
|---|---|
| Event: | Project No Control |
| Participants: | |
| Date(s): | May 2015 |
| Type: | |
| Fandom: | One Direction |
| URL: | initial Tumblr post Thunderclap link |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Project No Control was a fan project in One Direction fandom, organised in May 2015. It aimed at promoting "No Control" (a song from the Four album, released Nov 2014) as if it were a single, and getting radio stations to play the song.
The song, written by song writers as well as band members Louis Tomlinson and Liam Payne, features Louis as the main vocalist, a rare occurrence for the band.
The project was organised in response to drama in the fandom following Zayn Malik's departure from the band in the middle of a tour and his subsequent Twitter spats with Louis.
History
On May 11, 2015, Tumblr user buscandoelparaiso wrote:
Since this fandom is a black hole nowadays with no light at the end of the tunnel, I want to make a wish.I would like this fandom to gather together for a project I thought about while I was coming back home on the overground on a working day. The project is releasing No control as the first One Direction DIY single.
Since the team who works with the boys is not helping and everything surrounding this band is making me crazy and tired, it’d be nice if for once we made the press talk about something good as fans doing something for them on a world scale.
We all agree that No Control should have been a single from Four, we all love the song and we all wanted to hear it on the radio, blasting it, see the recognition this song should have had. It doesn’t matter there were other songs worth to be a single in the album, this is something the fandom loves and that has always generated a big enthusiasm.
So, since we are not going to get it as a single, we should release it ourselves. We should decide a date as the release, promoting it through twitter and tumblr and facebook. This fandom is born and raised throughout these platforms, promoting the band just like when they were kids at The XFactor shouldn’t be hard at all.
...
We can even compliment Louis on the vocals how much we want because nice messages are always nice and we all love Louis deep and hard and we want him to know it all the time. We also love the rest of the boys deep and hard and it’s always nice to celebrate the OT4 with a new single. Even if it’s a “fake release”, that’d be good.
All to show how powerful this fandom is and how good there still is in this fandom and also, how music can gather the world together – which is always the most important part of all this and the point of everything.[1]
Later that day, inspired by the post, a Thunderclap project named Project "NO CONTROL" was started by ziamisthenameofmyship.
Please request/buy/promote the song on 17 May 2015. Make a manip and share it. Play the song for your friends. Call your local (or satellite) radio station and request the song. Lets show everyone what having control is actually about!
Create fan art, write stories, put your photoshop skills to the test with videos and manips. Most of all - - play the song, request it on the radio, and buy it (if you haven't already done so). Lets give Four, No Control and all the songwriters involved (Liam, Louis, John, Julian, Jamie, and Anne Cunningham) the recognition they deserve. Remember, this isn't a "Louis" or "Liam" project - - this is the fandom showing their love for, and respect of, everyone involved in the writing of NO CONTROL.[2]
The project organizers also began a Tumblr blog at 1dstreetteam and a Twitter account at 1D_Street_Team in order to promote the project.
Impact
The project was very successful: in only six days, by May 17, 2015, the Thunderclap campaign for the project had 34,465 supporters and a social reach of 55,377,703 people.
The project was noticed by the band, who thanked fans on Twitter and on stage.
It was covered by some media outlets, including BBC Newsbeat, LA Weekly, and J-14. It was mentioned by James Corden on his Late Late Show and by Nick Grimshaw on the BBC Radio 1 Breakfast Show.
The song was officially added to One Direction's tour set list on June 13, 2015.
Fan Reactions
Many fans participated in the project enthusiastically:
it was one of the last times the whole fandom has ever come together and known peace. truly, honest to god, one of the wildest and absolutely gobsmacking fan-led movements i’ve ever seen in pop culture. it was so much fun.aliensyndrome, 2021[3]
Project No Control was the first time I paid actual attention to One Direction, back when I thought pop music wasn't worth shit (lol). I actually came across a tumblr post that detailed the whole thing and I was SO SO impressed that a group of fans were so knowledgeable, smart, driven, enterprising to get something like that done. Such a beautiful moment, and one of many reasons why this fandom is so interesting.anon, 2020[4]
Some fans expressed annoyance or refused to participate because the project was run by Larries and/or they believes it somehow aimed at promoting the Larry is Real theory. (This also happened with Rainbow Direction, another 1D fan project.)
[Anonymous:] Wait, no control project was a Larrie thing too?kind of... it was supposed to be about supporting the boys post zayn and it had that too... but the larries made it their own real hard tbh
cowboylikedean, 2016[5]
i ain't ever forget project no control was started by big ass larries as a distraction tactic from the reality that was louis partying and the band was breaking uphunflwr, 2018[6]
In its 2022 review of Everything I Need I Get From You, the Shit Larries Say podcast noted that buscandoelparaiso, the fan who started the project, was a Larrie. (A look at buscandoelparaiso's tumblr account appears to confirm this; not only does the blog profile include the blue and green heart emojis often used by Larries, but looking just at April 2015 there are several larrie posts, including one where she says she has no doubts about Larry.[7][8][9]) Back-to-louis spoke on the podcast about how the project was started during Louis' "party boy" phase after he and Eleanor had broken up in March 2015 and that the project aligned with big larries' goal of distracting the fandom and the press from Louis sowing wild oats.[10]
Further Reading
- No Control at the onedirection Fandom Wiki
References
- ^ Tumblr post, May 11, 2015, archived May 13, 2015
- ^ Thunderclap: Project "NO CONTROL"
- ^ aliensyndrome tumblr reply to anon ask "what was the no control project?", April 22, 2021
- ^ anon ask to setsailtomorrow, May 13, 2020
- ^ anon ask & reply by cowboylikedean, Archived version, 23 April 23 2016.
- ^ tweet by @hunflwr, Archived version, 21 November 2018.
- ^ tumblr post by kindofsharethat, reblogged by buscandoelparaiso from lapelosa, Archived version, 29 April 2015.
- ^ "Apparently Modest thinks that if the stunts get more sad like this one we are going to regret Eleanor’s lol", Archived version, tumblr post by buscandoelparaiso, 24 April 2015.
- ^ "Why should I ? They didn’t do anything that can possibly make me doubt it." anon ask answered by buscandoelparaiso, Archived version, 24 April 2015.
- ^ Shit Larries Say episode 31, on Spotify: sls and btl review einigfy, August 2022.