Niall Horan has returned with a new single, “Nice to Meet Ya” — a pop rock track that features long-time collaborator Julian Bunetta as well as Tobias Jesso, Jr. and Ruth-Anne Cunningham.
The song starts with an urgent piano riff that builds up to include hand-claps, a sturdy bass line and the rest of his dynamic full band. Horan sings of a flighty lover that he can’t quite shake. “One minute you’re there/The next one you’re gone/Been waiting on you all night so c’mon,” he sings on the bridge. “You know what I need I need/You know what I want.”
“It’s been nearly two years since I released Flicker and I can’t wait to get going again,” he said in a statement. “Writing ‘Nice To Meet Ya,’ in particular, was a special one for me and I’m so excited to finally share it with everyone.”
Horan’s 2017 solo debut Flicker showcased his folk-pop taste, while this new single is decidedly more rock. Jesso, Cunningham and Bunetta all contributed to that LP as well as Maren Morris, who sang on the single “Seeing Blind.” Earlier this year, Horan teamed up with Julia Michaels on the duet “What a Time.”