Harry Styles is hurtling towards chart domination in the UK and US this week with his critically acclaimed debut album.
But as he emerges to greet me — dressed head to toe in black — from the back of a trailer parked behind the venue of his first ever solo show in North London, it’s clear he is in a reflective mood.
Security have just ordered us not to move more than two meters from the modest caravan — where his band members are chilling after sound check — to avoid the hundreds of fans gathered nearby.
It’s for their own safety, of course. Who knows the reaction if they knew just a fence and four guards stand between them and the new prince of rock ’n’ roll?
The One Direction superstar shrugs it off — this level of hysteria has become a commonplace part of his day-to-day life.
My first interview with the band, in the “X Factor” canteen seven years ago, took place as a number of teenage girls were climbing on the roof.
It was a sign of things to come.
This is the first time I have seen Styles since 1D went on an indefinite break at the end of 2015 and there’s a lot to talk about.
While the 23-year-old is famously guarded about his personal life, he reveals that writing his own music let him reflect on how his life was turned upside down by being part of 1D.
He tells me: “I found it really therapeutic to write. Sitting at an instrument, you allow yourself to be vulnerable in a different way to speaking to anyone, even if you know them really well. I found it to be therapy — things that I’d either not thought about for a long time or hadn’t processed really because things had been moving so fast. I wanted to put out a piece of me that I haven’t put out before.”
Styles’ drawl is more intense and he talks more slowly than he has previously.
He’s so chilled out and cool it’s like watching someone in slow motion.
Like so many teen idols, Styles admits there were times he struggled to cope with life on the road.
He explains (slowly): “It’s really hard to go from doing a show with thousands of people there to your hotel room — from being around people to nothing. After five years of doing that, I learned a lot about myself. There’s no textbook telling you how to go through that stuff. With this album, rather than just go in and tell the story about what happened, I got to think about how it actually made me feel at the time. I feel like it’s a good way of saying what you want to say about something without having to sit and be like, ‘You know what, this really p—ed me off.’ But I also wanted it to be fun to listen to. I didn’t want it to make me depressed.”
How did he avoid turning to drink and drugs as a crutch like so many of his pop star contemporaries?
He answers: “On the first couple of tours it was so exciting as we’d have a drink and go to parties. But for me, the albums got higher so they become harder to sing so I knew if I didn’t come off stage and go to bed I wouldn’t be able to sing the next night. Also, it’s just not for me. I’d rather wake up with a clear head. I’m not straight edge or anything. I’ll celebrate and hang out with friends when it’s the right time. But I like knowing I’m not going to be stressing about having to do something the next day. I usually go long stretches without having anything, have a couple of drinks and wake up feeling like s—t, so I have another long stretch of not drinking.”
It was important for Styles to be “really honest” on the album.
“I didn’t want to sit and edit lyrics down,” he says. “Me listening to my favorite artists, I want to know why they chose to be alone one time and how that makes them feel, rather than, ‘I bought some champagne.’”
On Friday, Styles said on Radio 2 that Simon Cowell had given him an “anxiety problem”, something he insists was a “total, absolute joke.”
He says of the “X Factor” mogul: “He’s wonderful. I spoke to him recently actually. It’s been cool to go from working with him to have him call as a friend. He’s nice. I wouldn’t be here without him — a good guy.” But given his ex-bandmate Zayn Malik has told of his battles with anxiety, I wonder if it’s something he has suffered from seriously.
He says: “I get nervous. Doing stuff like this, it would be difficult not to get nervous. I try to see it as a good sign that I realize what it is that I’m doing. But I think it’s really important. People should always talk about things that are bothering them. It’s important to be open.”
I ask Styles about sexuality in pop, a topic in the headlines after Miley Cyrus spoke openly about her pansexuality. What’s his take?
He says: “Being in a creative field, it’s important to be progressive. People doing stuff like that is great. It’s weird for me — everyone should just be who they want to be. It’s tough to justify somebody having to answer to someone else about stuff like that.”
So has Styles personally labeled his sexuality?
He replies: “No, I’ve never felt the need to really. No.”
Would he like to elaborate? “I don’t feel like it’s something I’ve ever felt like I have to explain about myself.”
Styles is also steadfast that he won’t talk about his famous exes, singer Taylor Swift, TV host Caroline Flack and reality TV star Kendall Jenner.
And he remains tight-lipped about his current lady Tess Ward, the chef who promotes a “naked diet” and was in the crowd to watch his first solo gig, at London’s The Garage, on Saturday night.
I wonder how he has gone about dating during his time off.
He says with a laugh: “No, I’m not on Tinder! I don’t really know. I try not to overthink too much. I don’t really talk about it I guess. The rollercoaster affects different people in different ways. One of the ways that helps me dealing with that is compartmentalizing between working. All that stuff for me, is just a different thing.”
Does he feel burnt by high-profile relationships from the past? He says: “You just learn. It’s part of growing up. When we started I was 16. I’ve kind of learned what makes me feel uncomfortable. That stuff to me doesn’t feel like anything I’ve had to explain.”
Styles has managed to hang out with Swift, Flack and Jenner since the break-ups. So can you be friends with an ex?
He gives a wry smile and answers: “Everyone should be friends, right?”
The future of One Direction remains hotly debated — fans are still convinced the band’s hiatus will prove to be short-term.
I’ve always doubted that and, hearing Styles’ accomplished album, it feels hard to see him rejoining.
He giggles nervously when I suggest this, then says: “If you listen to anyone’s music, everyone’s is pretty different. The thing that I’m happiest about is that I didn’t leave there in a place of, ‘I feel so suppressed.’ I never felt like I was faking it. I really enjoyed it. It’s the best thing that ever happened to me.”
Of reuniting, he added: “It’s something I would never rule out doing. Right now everyone’s getting a chance to explore things they want to try and it’s really cool to see what they’re coming up with when it’s just them in a studio writing.”
In the first episode of my “Bizarre Life With Dan Wootton” podcast, Niall Horan raised the possibility 1D could return as a trio. Where does Styles stand on that? He says: “Um, I dunno really. I can’t say I’ve ever thought about it. It’s an interesting one. Maybe. I don’t think any of us would rule it out.”
To me it feels like something that might happen in a decade, not two years.
He replies: “Right, OK. I think it’s tough. I’ve enjoyed writing a lot and obviously I’m going to go on tour so I’m doing that at least for the next little bit. I don’t know with timelines. But in general it would be really bad for any of us to say: ‘No, I don’t want to do that again.’”
So you leave the door open?
“Yeah, absolutely.”
In December, the band were in the same room at the same time for the first time in a year following the death of Louis Tomlinson’s mum. Styles says: “It’s really difficult to see people under circumstances like that. But it was really nice to see everyone and get to support Louis.”
Absent was Malik, who left 1D before they split and has been largely negative about his time in the band.
Styles says: “It’s a shame he felt that way. But I’d never wanna force anyone to do anything they didn’t want to do. Life’s too short.”