Made in the A.M. is the fifth studio album by English-Irish boy band One Direction, released on 13 November 2015, by Columbia Records and Syco Music. The album is the group's first without member Zayn Malik, who left the group in March 2015, and will be their last before taking an extended hiatus in 2016. Upon its release, the record has received generally favorable reviews from critics.
The album was announced on 22 September 2015. Following the release of its lead single, "Drag Me Down", it was revealed that the group would going on hiatus in 2016 to take a break and pursue solo careers. On 22 September, the title for the fifth studio album, Made in the A.M., was officially announced along with promotional single "Infinity" being released. The group began to reveal the track listing on their Snapchat stories to which it was later confirmed on iTunes.
Julian Bunetta, the producer/songwriter behind many of the group’s singles, told Billboard that One Direction’s fifth album was recorded with the four members knowing it would be their last for a while. “There was a feeling of, ‘Well, we’re going to take a break, and anything in the world can happen during that time off,’ adding “There’s a song about losing someone that isn’t Zayn. There’s also a song about the band being on shaky ground and not knowing what the future is. There are songs about love, there’s a song that is a little more sexually charged. It’s all over the map.”