Harry Styles is pulling back the curtain on the inspiration for his upcoming album, Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally — including two songs that appear to be about women.
“The record for me is about, how do I still have my experience while I’m playing it?” Styles, 32, told Zane Lowe on Apple Music’s The Zane Lowe Show released on Wednesday, March 4. “It was like, ‘What music do I have to make for me to be on stage feeling like I’m in the middle of the dance floor?’”
The former One Direction singer explained that although he’s no longer “in the dance floor” and has had to “separate” his life again, he loves this music and wants to “dance to it,” which marks a stark contrast from his previous albums.
Styles also broke down the story behind two of his new tracks, “Carla’s Song” and “American Girls,” revealing that one song was inspired by a woman named Carla and the other shines a light on his desire for a family.
Scroll down to learn more about Styles new songs “Carla’s Song” and “American Girls” ahead of the album’s Friday, March 6, debut:
Who Inspired Harry Styles’ Track ‘Carla’s Song’?
“Carla’s Song” is the last track on Harry Styles’ fourth studio album and, according to the singer, it is about a real person.
“Carla kind of just became, in so many ways, the most important part of the record to me. It’s a song that answered so many questions,” Styles explained. “All of that questioning of why and who do I want to be and what am I giving by doing this and making sure that I love this enough and being at a show and going, ‘Oh, this is why I do this,’ all of those things.”
Styles said the overall song is about, “having a moment of reminding you of, like, there was a time when you heard a song for the first time that made you want to, like, touch music in some way.”
He noted that the song was inspired by a woman named Carla who was part of his group of friends that he chose to go out with and experience life with over the past few years inside of staying in and isolating.
“Carla … I will include in that group of friends that if I hadn’t said ‘yes’ to this thing, I wouldn’t have met this person,” Styles said. “If I hadn’t met them, I wouldn’t have met this person. If I hadn’t met them, I wouldn’t have met these people.”
He added that his muse is a “friend of mine in this group of friends,” who, while they were waiting to go to an after party, mentioned she had “just discovered Paul Simon.”
Harry Styles, Zane Lowe. Apple Music/The Zane Lowe Show
How Did Simon and Garfunkel Influence ‘Carly’s Song’?
Harry Styles told Zane Lowe that after his friend Carla brought up Paul Simon at another friend’s house, he decided to enlighten her about the rock duo Simon & Garfunkel.
“I was kind of like, ‘Oh, you’ve never heard Simon & Garfunkel?’” Styles recalled. “I grew up listening to Simon & Garfunkel all the time. When I lived in a pub a little bit when I was younger, there was like a four CD changer that I think ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ record was in the whole time I lived there. So I think it’s like why I like harmonies [and] listening to them so much.”
Styles then played Carla “Bridge Over Troubled Water” and said the moment was like “watching someone see or something in technicolor or discover magic.” Seeing Carla have a new listening experience reminded the singer that “by making music what you’re investing in, and it’s songs that go so beyond our lifetime.”
Styles added that it was at that moment the “pressure” was removed from him thinking that “people will be listening to this song” when he’s no longer around.
The artist noted that he and Carla then listened to “Kathy’s Song,” which he said was why he titled his track “Carla’s Song.”
“The ability to be able to add something, like, maybe someone hears a song of yours and goes, ‘This song’s going to be in my life forever.’ That is kind of it. Like, that is enough,” Styles concluded. “And I don’t ask for any more than that, really.”
Meet them at Harry’s House! As his Hollywood star continues to rise, Harry Styles‘ inner circle has also expanded to include some major A-listers. The British singer got his start on X Factor UK in 2010, competing alongside One Direction bandmates Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik and Liam Payne. The five musicians auditioned as […]
Harry Styles Breaks Down ‘American Girls’ Inspiration
Harry Styles revealed to Apple Music that despite “American Girls” sounding like an upbeat song about women in the States, it’s actually “quite a long song in a lot of ways.”
“I watched my three closest friends get married,” Styles shared. “And actually, seeing them trust in something and risk something to find something truly fulfilling, in a way that isn’t as, like, shiny and on paper as exciting as, like, you know, [when I was] watching them get married, I was like, ‘I’m single, so I’m having all the fun.’”
The Grammy winner noted that the song spins that notion and reveals that the single guy — in this case Styles — isn’t really the one having all the fun.
“‘American Girls’ is actually about watching them get married and like, you know, there just is a magic when you find the right person that you want to be with,” Styles continued. “But I think watching them do that and seeing that it doesn’t come without any uncertainty, it doesn’t come without any risk.”
Harry Styles. Apple Music/The Zane Lowe Show
Harry Styles Details How ‘American Girls’ Shines a Light on His Family Goals
Harry Styles shared with Zane Lowe that the heart of track No. 2, “American Girls,” is his own journey to self-discovery and realizing what he really wants out of life.
“I think I had a real honest conversation with myself about, ‘OK, in five years, what do I want my life to look like? And then how do I make changes to aim at that?’” Styles revealed. “I don’t want to be the guy who’s on his own but was like, ‘Oh, I really did it.’ I want to be fulfilled and I want to be in great relationships with people. I want to have great friendships with people. I want a family. I want these things.”
He added, “It just allowed me to go, ‘OK, what do I have to do to create space to allow these things to happen?’ I can’t just expect them to just happen to me.”
Styles noted that finding the “right person” will hopefully mean finding someone who will “hold you accountable to the person that they know you want to be.”
He mused, “I think accepting flaws and stuff is like, yes, having understanding is wonderful, but you know that I want to be better than that. So when you challenge me on something. It’s a gift to me, actually.”
