If one thing has become clear since One Direction announced a hiatus in late 2015, its that Harry Styles is out there living his best life. In 2016 it was announced he would be in the Christopher Nolan film Dunkirk, which is set to be released on July 21st. He did a spread for the British fashion magazine AnOther Man. But in typical Harry Styles fashion he has been very secretive about one thing: his solo career.
In 2016, it was announced he signed a 3 album deal with Columbia Records. Earlier this week he was officially added to their artist page. No official information about his debut album as a solo artist has been released. But thanks to Nick Grimshaw, Radio 1’s The Breakfast Show host, we know it was recorded in Jamaica. But thanks to a teaser video, the date of his first single is known, and it’s close.
On Saturday during the voice, a 30 second advertisement was ran teasing the date of Styles’ first single. The ad featured close up pictures of his hands and eyes in a dark room. Light piano music played as the singer reached his hand out toward a door. The ad ends with him opening the door, filling the previously dark space with light. The date “April 7th” flashes on the screen and then the ad ends. From a fan standpoint, the ad was frustrating. But from a marketing standpoint, brilliant. No word yet on what the debut single is titled. A link to watch the commercial is here.
March 28th, it was announced that teen heartthrob Jimmy Fallon will be hosting Saturday Night Live with Styles as a musical guest. The episode will air April 15th and we are all patiently awaiting, if not for the music, for whatever however Jimmy Fallon will incorporate him into his skits or monologues. For either reason, the episode will be worth the watch. So be sure to mark your calendars now and set all the reminders you need.
Other than the commercial and the SNL appearance, Styles has done a few other things to gear up fans for his solo career. Saturday he posted three white photos to Instagram with no caption. Tuesday he changed his Instagram and Twitter photo. And updated his bio to include a website (hstyles.co.uk). He also changed his Twitter header to a photo which looks very similar to the home screen for his website. The website is only one page for now but does include a sign up for email updates.
Even though he may be secretive, the hype for Harry Styles’ solo album is big. Everyone is on the edge of their seats to see what he will do next. But whatever it is, I am here for it.