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Louis Tomlinson of One Direction has told how the sound of his fans is leaving him with hearing loss and tinnitus - causing the boyband to take extra precautions at live shows.
The singer, who joined the band when he auditioned for X Factor in 2010 - and has since enjoyed worldwide success, has revealed that fevered fans have left him suffering tinnitus and that he is going deaf in his right ear.
"I am actually going slightly deaf in my right ear. It’s tinnitus... something like that," Tomlinson tells Radio City Live, shortly before a headline performance in Liverpool last week.
"All our fans are always very loud, especially Scousers," he added, laying blame on Liverpool fans for his loss of hearing.
A source for the band tells The Daily Record that precautions are in place to ensure the condition doesn't worsen - and to protect the band's staff and relations.
"When watching them, the band’s security team and family now have to wear earplugs," says the source. "The guys are only young, and still developing, so management insist they wear special, hi-tech in-ear earpieces and filters to reduce the noise of the fans’ screaming. It also reduces the levels of bass and music from the stage.
"When Louis made his comments, he had really bad earache but, thankfully, this has now cleared up but he knows to be careful in future."
Below: One Direction live in New Zealand
