Let's Talk About Harry Styles

collage by Mikayla Alpert

The world was first introduced to, now, one of the biggest pop stars in the world in his career debut on The X-Factor UK at the age of 16. There, Harry Styles made his way to fame in the infamous boy band One Direction. Later, fans may also have discovered him through his solo music in either his self-titled album, Harry Styles, or his 2019 chart-topping album Fine Line. If you are familiar at all with Harry, you know that there is not a single soul that will dispute his musical talents and overall charm. But what makes Harry so special? Is it his innovative fashion? His kindness? Or simply just his beautiful outer appearance? 

Let’s go back in time to 2010—the beginning of One Direction. As the boys continued to progress through the show, they gradually gained more and more fame. One Direction did not win their season of The X-Factor, but they had gained immense popularity by the time they were eliminated. Fangirls were lining the blocks and begging for more music from the band. They soon released, “What Makes You Beautiful,” and never stopped gaining success from then on. As the band continued to grow, it was evident who the fans liked more; Harry and Zayn were always the fan favorites. Although the other boys got much recognition, it was a fraction of the attention that Harry got. 

In One Direction, Harry was portrayed as the sex symbol and troublemaker of the group. He dated high-profile celebrities such as Taylor Swift and Kendall Jenner, which only further developed this reputation. One Direction’s management must have taken this into account, because Harry sang lead vocals on the majority of the band’s highest-grossing songs. One Direction was a significant part of many people’s childhood and teen years, which could be one of the reasons why Harry is held so highly in many people’s hearts. 

After five years of making music and touring the world, One Direction took a hiatus and has yet to reunite, despite the pleaing from fans. All of the boys in the band were relatively quiet for some time, but the fan base never dwindled. Two years after the breakup, Harry reemerged with his first piece of solo music, “Sign of the Times,” and once again took over the hearts and minds of people across the world. 

Harry soon followed his 2017 single with his self-titled album, Harry Styles. From being relatively quiet to releasing an album, Harry’s fans were ecstatic. Although he was not selling out arenas quite like how he was in One Direction, his success was still enormous. With a single ten-track album with no features, Harry completed a sold out world tour, appeared on numerous talk shows and was in the Top 100 for weeks. His solo album allowed people to see a more raw side of him. One direction Harry was dead, but was beautifully replaced with a short-haired, fashion-loving, emotional, chart-topping solo Harry. 

In the two years in-between his first solo album and his second solo album, Fine Line, Harry co-chaired the Met Gala, starred in Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk, performed with Stevie Nicks and Fleetwood Mac multiple times, became a Gucci ambassador, traveled the world, and probably did a million other things that the public never knew about. Luckily, Harry fans across the world were blessed again with his 2019 album, Fine Line, which is up for consideration for Album of the Year at the 2021 Grammys.

Fine Line gained much more recognition than his first album, and his fan base kept growing. This year, fans are elated with the knowledge that Harry is starring in a new psychological thriller called Don’t Worry Darling, alongside Florence Pugh and directed by his new girlfriend, Olivia Wilde. He is also set to star in another movie called My Policeman, based on Bethan Roberts' 2012 novel. With Harry diving into the acting world, it is destined that a new, likely older, audience will fall into the trap of Harry Styles' charm.

This brings me to a question that, frankly, keeps me up at night: Why do people like Harry Styles so much? As a Harrie (Harry’s fan base name) myself, I can tell you that I like him because I feel his music is extremely unique, but still somehow fits into pop. His fashion makes me want to push the boundaries on what I think fashion is and always challenges my traditional notions of clothes. He is stunning, beautiful and charming. His involvement in social and political issues is subtle, while still taking a stand. Now that is just my opinion, but science has said that people like Harry for other reasons. The Center For Advanced Facial Cosmetic and Plastic Surgery stated that, “Harry Styles is the most attractive celebrity” because of his symmetrical face proportions. 

On the Unpublished Instagram, we asked why our readers like Harry so much. We got answers ranging from the fact that he seems to respect women, is so talented, encourages fluidity, has an amazing voice, reminds people of happy memories and that he saved many lives with his music. However, the answer that we received the most was that he encourages his fans and makes them feel comfortable to be authentically themselves, and I could not agree more. In today’s society, everything feels like a competition to be more unique than the person next to you, while at the same time feeling the pressure to fit into everyone’s unachievable standards. 

Harry often said at concerts, “If you're a black, if you're white, if you're gay, if you're straight, if you're transgender, whoever you are, whoever you want to be, I support you, and I love every single one of you.” This level of compassion and support from a celebrity, especially one as famous as Harry, is rare and why it means so much to each and every fan. People who love Harry know that when you put in your headphones to listen to his music or step into a venue to watch him live, hundreds of other people who may look, speak or have different ideals than you will be listening to the same music and feeling equally understood.

There is a community in knowing that Harry does not make music to top the charts or to win awards; he makes music because he loves to and loves his fans equally. The world is head over heels about Harry and as he continues to grow as an artist and a person, I am sure the love affair will continue.