Activism and "Love On Tour"
Harry Styles is one of the most well-known artists in today's generation. During his career, he’s been a Grammy-winning singer, songwriter, and actor. Although his name is known across the world, his road to fame was bumpy. Styles first made an appearance in 2010, when he auditioned for The X Factor UK, a singing competition. During his time on the show, he was put in a group that was later known as One Direction, which is still considered one of the best boy bands of all time. However, after 4 tours and over 70 million record sales, the band broke up in 2015. Six years later, in September of 2021, Harry Styles started his first independent tour, named Love On Tour. There were seven overall legs worldwide, consisting of the US, Europe, South America, Asia, and Australia. Styles started this tour with two goals in mind- bring people together by love, and teach others how ‘to treat people with kindness’, which he certainly did.
Love On Tour was a huge hit - apps such as Instagram and TikTok were constantly covered in pictures of fans going to the tour, dressed up, and singing their hearts out to their favorite Harry songs. Any photos, videos, and posts online mentioning the tour gained a lot of attention, keeping him relevant. Because of his relevance, it was easier for him to bring awareness to issues happening in real-time. He made sure to acknowledge real-life situations and repeatedly waved different pride flags, read signs from fans, and talked about ‘controversial’ topics in his small speeches during his shows, which is a huge reason why Styles has millions of supporters globally. Because Harry Styles’ fans come from everywhere, they’re all different races, multicultural, and part of the LGBTQ+ community, which Harry happily embraces; from the way, he’s constantly showing his fans love and support, he’s proud of the diverse fandom he’s created, and ensures that he interacts with them.
Towards the end of the tour, Styles interacted with a fan in Italy who was holding up a sign that said, “From Ono to Wembley, help me come out.” Styles got his hands on the sign and held it up to the crowd. According to the New York Post, Styles responded to the sign with, “So, you’d like the people of Wembley to bring you out?” With a screaming audience, Styles picked up the flag and stated, “When this flag goes over my head, you are officially out.” Playfully moving the flag up and down, Styles endearingly joked, “Nope, still straight.” Finally, Styles sprinted across the stage, proudly waving the flag above his head, making the crowd scream, cheer, and cry. It’s moments like this that draw in fans and make them so utterly obsessed with him and his music, explaining why they were eager to pay (some even travel) to see him on tour. In fact, over the course of the three-year-long tour, Styles made $600 million.
Thinking back to the last three years, a lot happened. The Black Lives Matter movement erupted, Roe vs. Wade was overturned, bills came out that affected the LGBTQ+ community, and most recently, gun violence has been a significant issue. Considering that all of this happened over the course of Styles’ tour, he couldn’t ignore the real world that he and his fans were living in. So, he used a fraction of the money he made during the tour to donate to charities such as Planned Parenthood (a charity that works with people who want abortions), Choose Love (helping the LGBTQ+ community), Black Voters Matter, and Black Minds (dedicated to helping fight racism), and Everytown For Gun Violence (which helps towns that have experienced shootings), and several other charities.
Love On Tour was a game-changer for the music industry. Not only was it a fantastic display of Harry Styles’ skills and his music, but it was a beautiful way to bring people together through love in a world full of (what seems to be) hatred. His activism, kindness, and down-to-earth attitude were a reminder that there is good in the world; sometimes, it’s just hard to find. Harry Styles is a great example of what celebrities should be doing with their platform; donating, participating in activism, and spreading awareness.
By Marin Zocca