Louis Tomlinson ‘Lemonade’ Review: Funk-lit First Taste of ‘How Did I Get Here?

The former One Direction Louis Tomlinson’s “Lemonade” lands like a window swung open. You hear bright keys, a light funk skip in the guitars and drums that bounce rather than pound, the sort of groove that lets his vocal move with a grin instead of grit. 

It arrives as the first single from How Did I Get Here?, due 23 January 2026, after a BBC Radio 1 Hottest Record premiere on 30 September, which suits how quickly the hook bites. 

The chorus works because it is simple and vivid, “she’s so bitter, she’s so sweet… lemonade,” a clean image that stays put once it lands. 

Writing credits pair Tomlinson with Nico Rebscher, David Sneddon and Theo Hutchcraft, and you can feel those pop instincts in the tidy guitar nudge, the elastic backbeat and the soft synth shine around the edges. 

He kept the rollout personal, teasing the first play on social and telling fans “Lemonade is all yours tomorrow. 6.30pm BST. 1st play on BBC Radio One,” which fits the single’s built-for-now energy.

Reactions have already drawn a neat outline of its appeal. A top Reddit quip calls it “a Glee cover of an Olly Murs song,” cheeky but accurate about the gloss, while others lean “catchy” and “summery,” which matches the bounce you feel by the second chorus.

On YouTube the lyric video is climbing fast, which tracks with how the refrain turns over quickly and begs another spin. 

Taken as a scene setter, “Lemonade” brings colour back into his palette without overcomplicating things: bright, brisk, and obvious in the best way, a single that should kick even harder once a room is singing it back.

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