Harry Edward Styles (born 1 February 1994) is an English singer, songwriter, and actor. He rose to stardom as a member of the boy band One Direction. Styles grew up in Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, where he performed as a singer with his band White Eskimo. In 2010, Styles auditioned as a solo artist for the British music competition series The X Factor, where he and four other contestants joined to form One Direction. One Direction have since released five albums, performed four worldwide tours, and won several awards. One Direction went on an extended hiatus in January 2016.
In June 2016, Styles signed a recording deal as a solo artist with Columbia Records. Preceded by its first single "Sign of the Times", which reached number one in the UK and number four in the US, his self-titled debut album was released on 12 May 2017, debuting atop the UK and US charts. Styles made his acting debut in Christopher Nolan's war film Dunkirk (2017).
Video Harry Styles
Early life
Harry Edward Styles was born in Redditch, Worcestershire on 1 February 1994. He is the son of Anne Cox (née Selley) and Desmond "Des" Styles, who worked in finance. Many of his ancestors were farm labourers in Norfolk. Styles was raised in Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, after his parents moved there along with his older sister, Gemma, when he was a child. He attended Holmes Chapel Comprehensive School. Styles's parents divorced when he was seven and his mother later was remarried to Robin Twist; he passed away in 2017. He has an older stepbrother named Mike and a stepsister named Amy, children of Twist. As a sixteen-year-old, he worked part-time at the W. Mandeville Bakery in Holmes Chapel.
As a child, Styles loved singing, covering songs from Elvis Presley. While at Holmes Chapel Comprehensive, Styles was the lead singer for the band White Eskimo, which won a local Battle of the Bands competition.
Maps Harry Styles
Career
2010-2015: The X Factor and formation of One Direction
On 11 April 2010, Styles auditioned as a solo candidate for the seventh series of the British televised singing competition The X Factor. He failed to progress to the "Boys" category at "judges' houses". Four others in his age group also failed, but at the suggestion by Nicole Scherzinger, a guest judge, they were put together as an ensemble at Wembley Arena in July 2010, during the "bootcamp" stage of the competition, thus qualifying for the "Groups" category. The group consisting of Styles, Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson, and Zayn Malik, got together for two weeks to get to know one another and practise. In 2017, Styles said he had suggested the name One Direction to his bandmates and they agreed to keep it.
For their qualifying song at "judges' houses", and their first song as a group, One Direction sang an acoustic version of "Torn". Simon Cowell later commented that the performance convinced him that the group "were confident, fun, like a gang of friends, and kind of fearless as well." Within the first four weeks of the live shows, they were Cowell's last act in the competition. The group quickly gained popularity in the UK.
One Direction finished in third place and immediately after the final, their song "Forever Young", which would have been released if they had won The X Factor, was leaked onto the internet. Shortly afterwards it was confirmed that One Direction had been signed by Cowell to a reported £2 million Syco Records record contract. Recording for their debut album began in January 2011, as they flew to Los Angeles to work with RedOne, a record producer. A book licensed by One Direction, One Direction: Forever Young (Our Official X Factor Story), was published by HarperCollins in February 2011, subsequently topping The Sunday Times Best Seller list. The same month, the group and other contestants from the series participated in the X Factor Live Tour. After the tour concluded in April 2011, the group continued working on their debut album. Recording took place in Stockholm, London and Los Angeles, as One Direction worked with producers Carl Falk, Savan Kotecha, Steve Mac, and Rami Yacoub, among others.
One Direction's debut single "What Makes You Beautiful" debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart in September 2011. The boy band released their first studio album, Up All Night, in 2011, followed by their second, Take Me Home, in 2012. Along with the other members of the band, Styles appeared in an episode of the teen sitcom iCarly in April 2012. One Direction: This Is Us, a documentary about the group directed by Morgan Spurlock, was released in August 2013. The film grossed more than $30 million worldwide its first weekend in theaters. The group's third studio album, Midnight Memories, was released on 25 November 2013. One Direction released their fourth studio album, Four, in 2014 and Styles was one of the writers for Ariana Grande's song "A Little Bit of Your Heart" that year. In August 2015, it was revealed the group would be going on hiatus after the release of their fifth album, Made in the A.M., in November 2015. Styles said he first mentioned One Direction going on hiatus in 2014 while working in the studio, not wanting to "exhaust" the fan base.
The group has amassed five BRIT Awards three NME awards, two Kids' Choice Awards, and four MTV Video Music Awards, among other awards.
2016-present: Solo album and acting debut
In February 2016, Styles left the group's management company Modest Management and joined Jeffrey Azoff's Full Stop Management. Styles launched his own record label, Erskine Records, in May and he signed a recording contract with Columbia Records as a solo artist, the same label behind One Direction, in June. Styles wrote the song "Someday" in collaboration with Meghan Trainor for Michael Bublé's album Nobody but Me, released in October. Recording for Styles' debut album took place throughout 2016; recording sessions locations included California, London, and the Gee Jam Hotel Recording Studio in Port Antonio, Jamaica for a two-month period in the autumn. Jeff Bhasker executive produced the album, with Alex Salibian, Tyler Johnson, and Kid Harpoon serving as producers. On 31 March 2017, Styles announced his first solo single titled "Sign of the Times" and its accompanying cover art through social media. The song was released on 7 April, reaching number one on the UK Singles Chart. An accompanying music video for the song was released on 8 May, directed by Woodkid, featuring Styles levitating and walking on water. The song was variously described by critics as pop rock, soft rock, and a glam rock ballad. The album's second single, the folk rock fused "Two Ghosts", was less successful however, peaking at No. 58 on the UK Singles Chart. Styles was the musical guest on the American television program Saturday Night Live on 15 April 2017 and he made his first solo performance in his native country on The Graham Norton Show six days later.
His self-titled debut album was released on 12 May 2017, whereupon it debuted at number one in several countries, including the UK, the US and Australia. The record was heavily influenced by 1970s soft rock and was described by Variety as a "classic cocktail of psychedelia, Britpop, and balladry". It received generally favorable reviews from critics. The New York Times critic Jon Caramanica felt the "sometimes great, sometimes foggy" album is "almost bold in its resistance to contemporary pop music aesthetics", while Rolling Stone writer Rob Sheffield felt Styles had claimed "his turf as a true rock & roll prince," and Alexis Petridis of The Guardian argued it "understandably finds him trying on a variety of musical costumes, with varying degrees of success." The documentary Harry Styles: Behind the Album, chronicling the making of the album, was released on 15 May through Apple Music. In support of the album, Styles is embarking on his first headlining concert tour, Harry Styles: Live on Tour, from September 2017 through to July 2018. While on the tour, Styles performed covers of the One Direction songs "Stockholm Syndrome" and "What Makes You Beautiful", as well as Fleetwood Mac's "The Chain".
Styles made his film debut in Christopher Nolan's war film Dunkirk in July 2017, as a British soldier named Alex who is a part of the Dunkirk evacuation in World War II. He appeared alongside actors Fionn Whitehead, Jack Lowden, Aneurin Barnard, Tom Hardy, Mark Rylance, Cillian Murphy and Kenneth Branagh in the film. Styles auditioned against hundreds of other candidates, ultimately winning the role, with Nolan saying he was unaware of the extent of his fame and that Styles earned the role "because he fit the part wonderfully and truly earned a seat at the table." The Daily Telegraph film critic Robbie Collin noted Style's "bright, convicted, and unexpectedly not-at-all-jarring performance". BBC One broadcast Harry Styles at the BBC in November 2017, a one-hour special presented by Nick Grimshaw, featuring Styles performing songs from his album and interviews by Grimshaw. A music video for his third single, "Kiwi", was released later that month; it follows Styles and a group of children engaging in a large cake fight in a school hall. Styles performed the song on The X-Factor, marking his first solo performance on the show.
Artistry
His music contain elements of soft rock, pop, folk, rock, and Britpop. Styles has cited country singer Shania Twain as his "main influence" both musically and in fashion. He has also cited Pink Floyd, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Fleetwood Mac, Harry Nilsson, Freddie Mercury, and Elvis Presley as being influences.
Public image
Regarding Styles' time in One Direction, in website AllMusic writer Tim Sendra opined his "charming persona and elastic vocals had him positioned as the Timberlake of the group." Styles seemed "a dimpled, rakish prankster happy to wear the mantle of Class Clown... maybe because he knew that Most Likely to Succeed belonged to him too," as noted by Entertainment Weekly's Leah Greenblatt. During public appearances, Styles' fashion evolution has traded "teen-friendly" Jack Wills tracksuits for a selection of Saint Laurent, Gucci and Burberry.
As his time in the band progressed, the singer started wearing skinny-jean-and-boots. For Billboard's Chris Payne, "From his influences to his fashion to his onstage persona to his (formerly) flowing locks, Styles' vibe has always screamed rock star." The same publication noted over the course of five-year stint with his group, Styles' taste in fashion "has blossomed from a teen wearing purple Jack Wills hoodies to a carefully executed blend of 70s rock with a glamorous magpie feel." In September 2016 Styles was featured in three separate editorial shoots, and was interviewed by Paul McCartney and Chelsea Handler for Another Man magazine, prompting an editor from The Guardian to label the lack of shirtlessness and the focus on fashion for a niche publication as the death of a "heartthob" and birth of an "artthrob". Promoting his solo projects during 2017, Styles opted for "candyfloss" pink suits, printed satin flares, gradually heightening heels, a style described as "flamboyant look." Regarding his favouritism for pink, he quoted The Clash's Paul Simonon in an interview: "Pink is the only true rock & roll colour."
Philanthropy
In 2013, Styles along with bandmate Liam Payne partnered with Trekstock, to become ambassadors for the leading cancer charity to help raise money for cancer research. In 2015, during One Direction's tour, Styles visited the Lalela Project in Cape Town, South Africa, where he spoke to the affected youth and offered them concert tickets. The Lalela Project "helps children who are victims of 'extreme poverty, armed conflict, displacement and deadly diseases like malaria, TB and Aids', and gives them a chance to be creative through art." As a member on One Direction, Styles has also supported Comic Relief, and a new initiative titled Action 1D "to help better the future." In 2016, Styles shared a photo of his chopped-off braid on social media, donating his hair to the UK charity Little Princess Trust, which supplies and funds high quality wigs made of real hair to children who have hair loss as a result of cancer treatment or other illnesses.
In May 2017, after the release of his debut album, Styles played an intimate show at The Garage venue in Highbury, London, with all proceeds from the show going to the Little Princess Trust charity, to which Styles had donated his hair. He also played a secret show at the nightclub Troubadour in Los Angeles, California. All proceeds of the show went to the Los Angeles charity Safe Place for Youth. In October 2017, Styles was one of the artists who appeared at CBS Radio's 5th Annual We Can Survive concert in Hollywood Bowl; held in honour of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month with proceeds going to Young Survival Coalition.
Personal life
Styles was in a relationship with The Xtra Factor presenter Caroline Flack from November 2011 to January 2012, which caused controversy and criticism over their 14-year age gap. Styles also dated American country music singer Taylor Swift in late 2012.
In 2016, media outlets reported Styles attended a Brexit debate at the House of Lords. Asked by The Sunday Times who he planned to vote for in the 2017 British general election, he answered, "Honestly, I'm probably going to vote for whoever is against Brexit." In an interview with The Sun in 2017, Styles was asked if he has ever personally labelled his sexuality, with him answering, "No, I've never felt the need to really. I don't feel like it's something I've ever felt like I have to explain about myself."
Discography
- Harry Styles (2017)
Filmography
Film
Television
Awards and nominations
Tours
- Headlining
- Harry Styles: Live on Tour (2017-18)
References
Further reading
- Posy Edwards (2012), Harry Styles Annual 2013, ISBN 1409109445
- Louisa Jepson (2013), Harry Styles - Every Piece of Me, ISBN 1471128490
- Alice Montgomery (2013), Harry Styles: An Unauthorized Biography, ISBN 0718178432
- Mick O'Shea (2013), Harry Styles, ISBN 0859655121
External links
- Official website of One Direction
- Official website of Harry Styles
Source of article : Wikipedia
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