It is the first of February so that only means one thing: Harry Styles’ birthday. In honor of this special day. Here is a list of my favorite covers he has done as a solo artist.
- What Makes You Beautiful By One Direction
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In interviews, Harry often talks about his time in One Direction and how much he enjoyed it. Anybody can see how much fun he has while performing “What Makes You Beautiful”. It might be kind of an odd choice to cover this song because it is nothing like the music he puts out now. But, he changed the song to fit his style of music, and it sounds incredible. In a 2015 BBC interview, the members of One Direction were asked if he could only sing one song for the rest of their lives, what would it be? Harry answered with “What Makes You Beautiful”. And now, he can be able to perform as long as he makes music and tours.
- Stockholm Syndrome by One Direction
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In 2014, Harry wrote “Stockholm Syndrome” for One Direction’s fourth album, FOUR. Although the song may have a bizarre name, it is arguably One Direction’s best song and one of my favorites, it changes constantly. The song and title are a metaphor about falling in love with someone you did not intend to and not wanting to leave their side; in a way, being “trapped” by them and enjoying it. He first performed this cover as a solo artist in New York when he was on Good Morning America in 2017. He then added it to his 2018 world tour setlist.
- Just A Little Bit of Your Heart by Ariana Grande
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Harry wrote a song for Ariana Grande’s album My Everything and covered it during his tour. On an Instagram video showing Harry singing the song at his concert, Ariana commented that his version of the song has always been her favorite.
- Juice by Lizzo
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Harry covered “Juice” during a Live Lounge performance. This is an unexpected cover of his, but it makes perfect sense. Harry and Lizzo have become close friends since his cover, and she returned the favor by singing his song, “Adore You” when she went to the BBC Live Lounge. They even performed this song together, dancing together and holding hands.
- Girl Crush by Little Big Town
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Harry’s only cover that is available on Spotify is “Girl Crush” by Little Big Town. He stripped the instrumentals and made the song even sadder. This country ballad was another surprising choice for a cover because he never dabbled in the country sound before his debut album. However, this cover one of my favorites, especially the version of him performing it as BBC.
- You’re Still The One by Shania Twain
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Harry’s affinity towards country music doesn’t stop there. He performed this song with a country princess, Kacey Musgraves, at Madison Square Garden. Musgraves opened up for his tour in 2018, and this performance won an iHeart Radio Music award for best cover. Harry’s inspirations for this cover were his mom, who is a Shania Twain fan, and that he grew up on her music.
- The Chain by Fleetwood Mac
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Another childhood influence of Harry’s is Fleetwood Mac. Harry expresses his love for the 70’s soft rock band frequently. He even brought a carrot cake backstage for the band when he saw them in concert in 2014. It was not a shock when he covered one of their biggest hits on BBC’s Radio 1 Live Lounge. He covered this song every night on his worldwide arena tour, Harry Styles: Live on Tour. This song fits his voice so well and blends in seamlessly with his 70’s soft rock sound. That he incorporated in his self-titled album.
- Landslide by Fleetwood Mac
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Harry has only covered this song, alongside the queen herself, Stevie Nicks. The first time he performed with her was at the Troubadour when he was touring for his debut album. He brought her on stage to sing “Landslide” and his song “Two Ghosts”, both of these songs are about reminiscing on past relationships and yearning for closure. The most recent time they covered “Landslide” was during Harry’s One Night Only concert at the forum in 2019. Stevie has shown so much support for Harry and his music. She even called Fine Line “his Rumours”, and after seeing all the success he has had in the past year, I think she was correct.