Styles, Harry (1994-…), is an English singer, songwriter, and actor. He first became known as a member of One Direction, a British and Irish pop group that gained international fame in the 2010’s. Styles has also enjoyed a successful solo career. In 2021, he won a Grammy Award for best pop solo performance for the song “Watermelon Sugar” (2020). In 2023, he won Grammy Awards for album of the year and best pop vocal album for Harry’s House (2022), his third album.
Harry Edward Styles was born on Feb. 1, 1994, in Worcestershire, England, about 130 miles (210 kilometers) northwest of London. Styles was interested in music from a young age, forming a band called White Eskimo in his early teens. In 2010, Styles auditioned to be on the reality music competition program “The X Factor” (2004-…). He appeared on the show but was eliminated after several rounds. However, the show’s judges suggested Styles and several other solo performers form a pop group. The group included Niall Horan of Ireland and Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, and Louis Tomlinson of England, along with Styles. The group performed as One Direction soon after and finished “The X Factor” in third place. The group quickly gained popularity in the United Kingdom.
One Direction went on to make such chart-topping albums as Up All Night (2011) and Take Me Home (2012). In late 2015, the band members announced they would take an extended hiatus (break).
In 2016, Styles signed with Columbia Records as a solo artist. In 2017, he released the song “Sign of the Times.” The song was met with much acclaim, topping the charts in the United Kingdom. The same year, Styles released his first solo album, Harry Styles. Styles made his motion-picture debut in the war thriller Dunkirk (2017). Two years later, Styles released his second album, Fine Line (2019).
