Arry Styles just might be the most joyous person on the planet. For his second sold-out concert at Madison Square Garden in New York City on Friday, June 22, he effortlessly commanded the stage with more presence and charm than some artists who are double his age and have twice the experience.
Clad in a custom blue Calvin Klein suit, Styles rarely stopped smiling during his 90-plus-minute set as he ran through all 10 tracks from his superb self-titled solo debut (which Us Weekly named the best album of 2017) in addition to one megahit and two deep cuts by his former boy band, One Direction. The setlist also included a rock version of Ariana Grandes Just a Little Bit of Your Heart, which Styles cowrote, as well as a rousing cover of Fleetwood Macs The Chain, two unreleased numbers and a surprise duet with his opening act, Kacey Musgraves.
Of course, the 23-year-old is no stranger to performing for tens of thousands of fans, many of them screaming teenage girls and boy, were there plenty in attendance on Friday. During his five years with 1D, Styles effervescent spirit was contagious and helped his bandmates Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson and Niall Horan come alive on stage. Hell, he even made the self-described introvert Zayn Malik (who abruptly exited the group in 2015) crack a smile here and there.
These days, Styles continues to light up the room. The only thing that has changed is that his shows are more stripped back now. On his current tour, which runs until July 14, he has been performing in arenas that house less than 20,000 people, rather than the stadiums that 1D booked for upwards of 80,000 fans. The production this time around is fairly simple, and there are no costume changes, video interludes or intermissions. But the intimacy suits him.