Niall Horan has given his first full interview since releasing his debut solo single 'This Town' yesterday.

The One Direction man discussed the process behind writing songs on his downtime from the boyband, and it included a backpacking trip to Southeast Asia, where he said no-one recognised him.

"Backpacking trip kind of normalised my life, I suppose," he said on the Zach Sang Show. "I didn't get asked for photos anywhere. When you're in tourist spots, no one expects you to be there. So it was kind of like, I kept my hat on, kept my sunglasses on, kept my head down, did all the usual tourist stuff in Southeast Asia with a rucksack on my back. I definitely learned a lot on that trip."

He also spoke about plans for his debut solo album, which he said would probably be released next year, and that it wouldn't be a million miles from 'This Town', which he said was about 'being from a small town [and] everytime you go back to your hometown you'll see this girl in the bar, or wherever, and then everything comes back to you."

His 1D bandmates tweeted their congratulations yesterday, although nothing from Zayn Malik:

 

Hear the full interview below: