I’m not the biggest Fifth Harmony fan in the world, but as someone who pays at least a little bit of attention to pop culture, I’ve always taken notice in their happenings if I see them pop up on social media. So when I saw that they have decided to take a hiatus to focus on their solo careers, I wasn’t all too shocked. After all, One Direction coincidentally announced a hiatus for similar reasons only two and a half years ago.

Why bring up One Direction, you may ask? Well, it’s simply because there are similarities that I have noticed between both groups.

Both One Direction and Fifth Harmony, though from different countries, were formed on the X Factor. Both groups originally consisted of five members, and the wonderful Simon Cowell took both of them under his wing after they both ended up placing third in their respective seasons. Both groups achieved massive success, having a number of singles peak in the Top 100 on Billboard’s charts.

Many of you are probably thinking, “But Emma, this proves nothing. Maybe they just knew what it took to be successful and it’s all one big coincidence.” Well, that may be true, but there’s more to the story than what I’ve already shared.

Both groups suffered the loss of a member at seemingly pivotal points in their career. With Zayn Malik and Camila Cabello stepping away to pursue solo careers of their own, both One Direction and Fifth Harmony promised to keep working on their group projects until further notice. One Direction even managed to carry out the rest of a world tour after Zayn left. Both Camila and Zayn, meanwhile, have seen quite a bit of success since splitting from their former groups.

While it’s unclear whether or not Fifth Harmony’s hiatus will lead to a permanent split like One Direction’s hiatus appears to be, I can’t help but notice how both groups have had timelines that mirror each other.

I mean, call me crazy, but it’s just too similar. I can’t say whether or not this is some big plan by Syco, or if Fifth Harmony was just inspired by One Direction during their time as a group. I’m just amazed at how this is unfolding. Sure, the nitty-gritty details between the two groups are different, but that’s to be expected. You can’t make both groups follow each other, it’ll just look weird.

I’m interested to see what happens now that Fifth Harmony has confirmed the split. Which members will become chart-topping stars? Will any of them put music aside for a little bit? Will they become parents?

There’s so many unknowns, and I can’t wait to see them unfold.