Harry Styles is a force in the entertainment industry. From his first solo single, ‘Sign of the Times’ debuting at number 1 to his solo album coming out May 12th, oh…and that sold out world tour, nothing can stop him. Fans spent the last almost two years waiting for his big move and now, he’s giving us more than we could have imagined.
While ‘Sign of the Times’ was a beautiful song on its own, once fans learned that Harry filmed a video for the tune, excitement built. Not only would it be his first solo music video, it would most certainly tell a story. The song was so important to Harry that it was his debut single, that stands for a lot.
It would make sense that the music video would be powerful, and now that we’ve seen it, we don’t think he could have done better. The video is as impactful as the song is and it helps to tell the story that Harry wrote; a story that a lot of fans can relate to in their own ways.
Harry’s favorite part of music is the way people can take so many different things from it and that’s because we all live differently, but music is the universal language that brings us together. This video does the same thing. You can infer from it what you will, and it’s part of your own experience that influences what you see.
The video definitely tells a story, aside from being absolutely stunning visually, it’s somber in nature and very fitting for the song. You’re taken on a journey but not one that takes away from the powerful lyrics and meaning of ‘Sign of the Times’.
In the beginning of the video, Harry seems to be toying with the idea of flying. He’s lifted off the ground just enough a couple of times and he seems to feel weightless before finally taking flight. He doesn’t do it in a way that seems silly or fake, all of the scenes are real, not manipulated by a green screen, so you see him truly having the time of his life in some shots while simply taking it all in during others.
He said, in an interview, that the song was about a mother finding out she wouldn’t survive childbirth.
‘Sign of the Times’ came from ‘This isn’t the first time we’ve been in a hard time, and it’s not going to be the last time’. The song is written from a point of view as if a mother was giving birth to a child and there’s a complication. The mother is told, ‘The child is fine, but you’re not going to make it.’ The mother has five minutes to tell the child, ‘Go forth and conquer.'”
The video could be a reflection of that, maybe it’s a birthday and it’s a way to feel connected to his mother who gave him everything. Maybe it’s his way of saying it is alright, that he’s alright, even if he had to go about it without her.
Whatever you take from it, you can’t deny that it’s just beautiful. We couldn’t have imagined anything better. Being the first solo music video he put out, you know this moment means so much to him, we hope he feels our support.
If he doesn’t yet, he soon will after seeing the numbers rise as viewers tune into watch the premiere. In under an hour it’s already seen 433,229 views.
Harry is embracing a side of himself that we’ve not seen before and while he’s growing and embracing life in a new way, he’s inviting us along for the ride. We’re very glad to be here.