HARRY STYLES

LIGHTS UP MADISON GARDEN WITH
PURE JOY: CONCERT VIEW

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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.

A TRUE MODERN
DAY ROCK STAR

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he singer-songwriter exuded confidence from the time he strutted on stage for the opening number, Only Angel, until he closed out the show with the rollicking Kiwi, which had the floor of the arena shaking as fans belted the lyrics and jumped up and down for three minutes straight.


The most tender moment came at the midpoint when Styles shuffled off the main stage and was escorted through the crowd (with his security team in tow) to a much smaller, blink-and-you-miss-it platform on the opposite end of the venue. He collected at least ten bouquets of flowers from admirers along the way before tossing them over to members of his team. Once he hit the B-stage, surrounded by fans at every angle, he pulled out an acoustic guitar and serenaded everyone with his beautiful ballad Sweet Creature followed by the 1D fan favorite If I Could Fly.


Another highlight came moments later when he performed his soaring lead solo single, Sign of the Times, back on the main stage as the audience lit up the Garden using the flashlights on their smartphones.


"THERE IS JUST PURE JOY IN THIS ROOM AND I THANK YOU FOR THAT."