The accompanying music video, directed by John Urbano, depicts One Direction spending time on a beach in Malibu, California. The music video was uploaded to YouTube on 19 August 2011 and has accumulated more than 1.2 billion views since it premiered. The clip garnered the group three MTV Video Music Awards at the 2012 ceremony. One Direction performed the song live on televised shows, at awards ceremonies, and on all four of their major concert tours: Up All Night Tour (2011–12), Take Me Home Tour (2013), Where We Are Tour (2014) and On the Road Again Tour (2015), while band member Harry Styles performed the song on his . Artists including the Piano Guys have covered "What Makes You Beautiful".