Harry Styles current single tops the singles chart, and with good reason.
Harry Styles has gone a long way since his One Direction days. For one the 28-year-old singer was able to unshackle himself from the trappings of a pop boy band and has since carved a new musical persona for himself. And this he was able to accomplish without alienating his fans from his 1D days. Whom we could say have grown along with Styles. That in itself is an impressive career feat and not everyone can pull it off. But Harry always did have his own style (pun intended). When HS started his solo career, he completely went the other way and embraced the sounds and styles of 70’s and 80’s styled pop and found that it fit him. The acoustic side of Pink Floyd and Peter Gabriel are just some of sonic totems that Styles have paid homage to on previous outings. We could say that Styles is working his way on said eras. So it’s no surprise that his latest single titled “As It Was” sounds the way it does.
This mid-tempo number is ear tweaking throwback to new wave. The synth and keys dominated sound and drum machine-like beats certainly give nod to the style. Couple that with the ruminating themes of regret and wanting matched with a memorable but melancholic melody and you’re dancing with tears in your eyes along with the song (that’s and Ultravox reference kids).
But really, everyone from The Weeknd, Dua Lipa to Bruno Mars are taking cues from the sounds of the 80’s, so why can’t Harry? And if he can do it in a trendy way wearing a blouse and raiding his girlfriend’s dresser for accessories, then more power to him.
The recently released Megan Thee Stallion single featuring Dua Lipa titled "Sweetest Pie" certainly doesn’t need any deep deciphering what it’s about. Megan Thee Stallion is a lightning rod for all things steamy and throw in sexy-sounding (and looking) Dua Lipa in there and you’ve got a one-two sexual knockout combo. This club-ready dance and rap number is a fun cool bop from MTS’s latest album of the same title.
According to his press, American singer-songwriter Conan Gray was recently christened by GQ magazine as “The New Prince of Sad Songs.” There’s good reason of course, as the Gray has already proven his mettle with a pair of previously-released singles “Heather” and “Maniac” that already went global and sang to a whole lot of young kids experiencing relations, emotions and heartbreak. Gray’s new single “Memories” is poised to do the same. Gray sings “his cathartic delivery over sparse piano” as he pleads “Don’t ruin this one for me / please don’t make it harder than it already is / I’ m trying to get over this.”
The 23-year-old Conan Gray had his start, as most music acts his age do, on YouTube. The only difference is that Gray was ultra-successful at it, and he transmuted it to an equally successful music debut. Think Olivia Rodrigo levels of popularity, and you’ll get an inkling of how massive Conan Gray is. Gray is currently on a massive world tour and singing to a lot of listeners eager to listen to songs about heartbreak.
Man, that’s a lot of broken hearts.