After a year like 2020, events like these will never be taken for granted again.
It’s About Time
Live music is returning and with it comes Harry Styles’ long-awaited second tour. Back in 2019, tickets sold rapidly to Love on Tour, which is promoting the singer’s sophomore album Fine Line. The former One Direction member, known for his kindness, feminine fashion, and inspiring lyrics has had a great couple of years, gaining traction in the Spotify charts. So, when the tour was postponed due to COVID-19 concerns, fans from around the world were devastated. However, to adopt Styles’ positive outlook, fans looked on the bright side: there was now much more time to put together a show-stopping outfit.
Paired with the pressure to live up to Styles’ own iconic fashion, social media platforms such as TikTok and Twitter have a growing amount of people that want to see, and likely judge, the looks people cook up. Most fans use social media to “hype up” their fellow Harry enthusiasts and many social media accounts have been created and dedicated to featuring some of the best looks. Patterned pants, sparkly dresses, fun boots, and cowboy hats are just some of the popular pieces in fan outfits on this tour.
On Saturday, September 4th, Love on Tour began at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The stage was set, the band was ready, and fans arrived dawning jaw-dropping outfits. Many concert-goers modeled their looks after Styles’ personal taste: high-waisted pants and a fitted top. Some took inspiration from memorable Harry moments such as his leather-and-a-boa look from the 2021 Grammy Awards. Others simply channeled the phrase that Styles preaches at most of his shows: “please feel free to be whoever you want to be in this room tonight.”
So, What About Harry?
Styles himself is no stranger to the fashion world. After wearing a plethora of custom suits during his first tour, the singer was a co-chair of the 2019 Met Gala and has walked numerous other red carpets. After the long interlude between tours, the pressure was on for Styles’ stylist, Harry Lambert. The Vegas crowd was in for a treat when Styles walked out wearing pink, high-waisted pants, a sparkly pink vest, and cream-colored boots. For the next ten shows, Harry wore different colored and patterned versions of the same outfit: high-waisted pants, a silky button-down shirt, suspenders, and boots. While some fans seemed to get tired of the similar looks, most appreciated the outfits because it mirrors the outfit seen on the Fine Line album cover. However, in Nashville, the pattern was broken when a light pink, iridescent suit was the outfit of the night. Since that show, performance looks have been a bit more unique- polka-dotted pants, feathery sleeves, etc.
With all of the fashion talk, you may be wondering what attending a Love on Tour show is actually like. Once inside the building, people buy merch, sip on beverages, and dance to the pre-show playlist which includes fan-favorites “Good 4 U” by Olivia Rodrigo, “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen, “Olivia” by Styles’ former band One Direction, and more. After a set by opener Jenny Lewis, Harry and his amazing band take the stage. The main set features songs from both of his solo albums, and even One Direction’s massive hit, “What Makes You Beautiful.” Audience members can prepare for a good mix of screaming, dancing, laughing, and sobbing. Despite the 90-ish minutes that Styles is on stage, fans attending the first few shows noticed the absence of a popular track off of Fine Line: “To Be So Lonely.” Fan-made signs began to ask that the song be added to the setlist. In Chicago, a couple of fans handed out dozens of signs demanding “justice for TBSL.” The song was added the next night.
Besides his vocal abilities, another one of Harry’s many talents is catching things thrown on stage. Sunglasses, pride flags, flowers, and shoes are just some of the objects Styles plays around with during his shows. He can also be a bit of a comedian and is known to playfully call out audience members who are texting or badly dancing during the show. Before singing his radio hit single, “Watermelon Sugar”, Styles has created an interlude in which an instrumental version of the song is played and he interacts and jokes with the crowd. Harry closes each tour stop the same way he ended the shows of his first tour, with a performance of his rock and roll, high-energy song “Kiwi.” While it is not 100% clear what Styles’ obsession with fruit is, it is clear that a Love on Tour show will be a good time.
No matter if you attend ten different tour stops or experience the excitement through a phone screen, it’s definitely heartwarming to see live music bring joy to the people again. Love on Tour shows are colorful, accepting, and energetic, and the outfits, videos, and stories shared throughout the tour reflect that. Despite the overwhelming amount of internet content fans have received so far, Styles will remain on tour for about another month, and I, for one, cannot wait to see what Harry and his concert attendees do – or wear – next.