British boy band One Direction has been named Artist of the year by Billboard.
The 'Steal My Girl' hitmakers released their third album 'Midnight Memories' this year and raked USD 290 million from their 69 performances across the globe that helped them to emerge as a successful band.
The ranking was done on the basis of the group's chart performances from December 7 last year to November 29. Also their social, streaming and box-score data was taken into consideration.
One Direction comprising Louis Tomlinson, 22, Zayn Malik, 21, Harry Styles, 20, Niall Horan, 21, and Liam Payne, 21, are the ninth group to take home the title since it was established in 1981.
Country star Taylor Swift was Billboard's artist of the year in 2013.
