Harry Styles is opening up about his life on the road.
The 32-year-old “Aperture” singer, who is about to kick off his residency in New York City, is on the cover of W Magazine‘s Volume 4, The Fashion Issue, out online now and on newsstands on September 8.
During the discussion with Julio Torres, Harry spoke about his upcoming MSG residency, his break from touring, his ego and taking in praise and criticism, and fostering a sense of community.
The interview is paired with a photo shoot captured by David Sims.
See highlights from the conversation with Harry Styles inside…
On performing in New York City:
“New York operates at a higher frequency than I do. At times, I find it quite a lot. But for that reason, I’ve always loved performing there so much. You really feel the city during the show, this swelling of energy. I’m not going to do this forever. It feels very singular, and that’s allowing me to really be in it. During the shows, there’s a lot more moments where I’m standing there taking it in, when I’m in the room with the crowd, seeing this energy they’ve made. I feel so aware that it exists past the shows, the songs, the tour—everything. It’s like, ‘You did this more than I did,’ in a lot of ways. I can show up and play as many times as people buy tickets for. Doing this many shows in New York is solely because of them.”
On being onstage:
“When I was younger, admitting that it’s not really about me would have been quite terrifying. Now it’s actually really liberating to acknowledge that it’s so much bigger than me. We, as the crew and the band, get to create an environment for people to have this joyous time. But we’re all there for the same thing. If you’re onstage, it’s a very godlike position. But I’m not guiding you to me. I’m not asking you to follow me. I’m saying that I believe in the same thing that you believe in, and we’re all here for that reason, which is beyond me.”
On his fans’ energy:
“The fans have always been so emotionally generous toward me. I feel it now more than ever after taking a break from the road. When you’re around something all the time, it numbs you to it—like eating your favorite food all the time. The break recontextualized it. Black is most shocking on white…”
On praise and criticism:
“One of the best things anyone has told me is that comments, the bad and good, neither of them are true. Some people will tell you you’re the best thing in the world, and that’s not true. Some people will tell you you’re terrible, and that’s also not true. When you’re younger, there’s this want to be great, and it’s harder to negate the positive stuff. When people say, ‘Oh, this is great!’ you want to be like, ‘Really? You think I’m great?'”
On taking time away from touring:
“In the time that I took away from touring, I watered a side of my life I hadn’t paid much attention to previously. Because I started so young, touring became so much of who I was. I would feel quite uncomfortable with stretches at home. I didn’t know what to do with myself sometimes. Now I feel really fortunate to have this incredible job and creative environment, but also this life away from it that I’m excited to spend time in. I don’t know that I had that before. The idea of not touring is less frightening to me. It feels quite special to be in it, bathe in it, and be aware it’s not forever. It doesn’t come with this existentialism that it used to, when I was like, Who am I if I don’t do this? I’m a little more comfortable with who I am if I’m not doing it, which makes touring a lot more enjoyable.”
On the importance of community:
“Post-Covid, and now in this AI time, there’s something about standing next to a sweaty stranger and exchanging energy that you can’t really replace with anything. The desire is for the more tangible, the little bits of magic that just happen.”
For more from Harry Styles, head to WMag.com.
He was also just spotted around NYC ahead of his upcoming residency.
The post Harry Styles Says He Won’t Tour Forever, Reveals How His Break Changed His Relationship With Performing appeared first on Just Jared - Celebrity News and Gossip | Entertainment.