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in fact, now Louis’ entire line-up of support acts for next year’s tour, The Beaches, The Aces, and now Pale Waves, consists of loud & proud members of the LGBTQIA+

Going by social media, the third edition of the BookMyShow-promoted and produced Lollapalooza India in Mumbai was, according to its Gen Z, Gen X and millennial audience, all about Shawn Mendes or Green Day (for the latter two). While those diagonally opposite acts created some core memories for their fans, there were other artists and bands who defined Lolla 2025 for their faithful followers.

Louies barged to the stage where former One Directioner Louis Tomlinson was performing as soon as the gates opened and seemed to have notably outnumbered those who had planted themselves against the barricades for Green Day.

Zayn acknowledged his former bandmate from the stage during his show at the Shrine Expo Hall on Wednesday (Jan. 29).

By Gil Kaufman

Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik at Rose Bowl on Sept. 11, 2014 in Pasadena, Calif. || Jeff Kravitz/OneD/Getty Images

Former One Direction band mates Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik had an unexpected reunion, sort of, during Zayn’s Stairway to the Sky show at Los Angeles’ Shrine Expo Hall on Wednesday night (Jan. 29). In video of the sweet moment caught posted by Pop Crave, Malik told the crowd, “tonight is kind of special. An old friend of mine is here supporting me tonight.”

As the screams reached a roar, Malik looked up to the balcony and said, “He’s sitting somewhere here. I don’t want to give his location away, but Louis is here tonight.” In a second video, the camera swings up to Tomlinson in his box seat, catching the “Bigger Than Me” singer tapping his heart after the shout-out. According to fans, Malik later dedicated the songs “What I Am” and “Alienated” to Tomlinson.

As far as fans were aware, it was the first (kind of) joint public appearance by the two since they both attended the funeral of their late 1D mate Liam Payne in November; Payne died on Oct. 16 after falling from the third-floor balcony of the CasaSur Palermo Hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina. In a touching tribute to their bond, all of the permanently on-hiatus boy band’s members attended the funeral in Buckinghamshire, England in November, including Niall Horan and Harry Styles.

Malik rescheduled the tour — his first solo outing to date — after postponing the U.S. portion of the outing following Payne’s death. He launched the tour on Jan. 21 with a show at the Anthem in Washington, D.C. His next scheduled gig is on Friday night (Jan. 31) is a third and final show at the Shrine in L.A.

If you’ve been on social media today, you may have seen a certain word trending: Zouis. But what does it mean? Well, Zouis is portmanteau of Zayn and Louis. Specifically, Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson from One Direction.

The pair were spotted together in Los Angeles, with Tomlinson attending Malik’s gig—sending the internet into a frenzy

With Zouis spreading like wildfire on social media, this story operates as an interesting example of how fandoms can deal with grief, and, for once, how the internet can be a positive communal force.

What’s Happening With Zouis? Why Were Zayn Malik And Louis Tomlinson Together?

Zayn Malik is currently on his Stairway To The Sky tour, and is playing several nights at the Shrine Expo Hall in Los Angeles, California.

Louis Tomlinson—who was in boyband One Direction with Malik—attended the show on Jan. 29. This is the first time the pair, known as Zouis, have been together publicly since One Direction bandmate Liam Payne’s funeral on Nov. 20, 2024.

After Malik left the group in 2015, One Direction broke up the year after, and the members have rarely been together since, with each pursuing solo careers.

This makes the appearance of Zouis a special moment for fans, as well as seemingly for Malik and Tomlinson themselves, with the former referencing his bandmate’s attendance at his concert in glowing terms:

How Did Social Media React The Appearance Of Zouis?

The online world went wild for the return of Zouis. There are tens of thousands of tweets about the event. Many of which show pure enthusiasm:

While others contain simple declarations of love towards Zouis:

There’s a sombre tone to some posts which reference the death of Liam Payne:

While difference accounts are self-referential about their own reaction to the partial One Direction reunion:

There’s one overwhelming trend though: pure excitement and adulation.

Why Is Social Media Reacting To Zouis In This Way?

There are a few things at play. Firstly, One Direction fans are renowned for their obsession with the group. Combined with the size of the boyband—3.4 million people saw them during their Where We Are tour alone—this means there’s a huge community of interested people whenever news about them drops. Like Zouis.

But there’s also a more sombre side to this overwhelming online reaction, and that can be linked to a sense of loss.

It’s common for fans to form parasocial relationships with people they follow. Effectively, this is when individuals believe they have a close tie with public figures, even though this is a one-way friendship. Often, this is driven by the perceived intimacy of social media.

This can induce serious emotions. So, when a member of a group like One Direction passes away, as is the case with Liam Payne, it can feel as though someone they’re close with had died.

When Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson came together for the first time since the funeral, it can feel like a cathartic moment for fans, as though things are righting themselves. One way of dealing with this outpouring of emotion, then, is to post on social media.

And that’s a key way of viewing this explosion of activity about Zouis: a celebration.

People are not only expressing joy at seeing members of One Direction together, but this enthusiasm also acts a tribute to Liam Payne. This creates a sense of community, of an entire fandom coming together and praising a new chapter in something they love.

Ultimately, the spread of posts about Zouis displays a positive side to social media, one where people share a connection and come together in unity. In these divided times, that’s a beautiful thing to see.

zayn giving louis a big shout out during his stairway to the sky show in la (night 2) 29.01.25 🥹❤️

louis in the crowd: 

https://x.com/popcrave/status/1847350107580354820?s=46

From Cheryl Cole:

onedirection