Harry Style is currently one of the most successful artists. He first became known as a member of the boy band One Direction, founded in 2010, but it wasn’t until six years later that he really took off with his solo singer. Robbie William has a similar career behind him. After leaving Take That, his debut album Life Thru a Lens catapulted him to the top of the charts 25 years ago. The 48-year-old sees even more parallels between him and Harry Styles.
In a radio interview with the BBC, the presenter said he saw a great resemblance between the two singers. “Absolutely,” Robbie Williams replied without hesitation. He became aware of that when the YouTube algorithm showed him a video of a Harry Styles concert. The 28-year-old spoke between the songs, “and what he said was a bit of nonsense, a bit of banter,” describes Robbie Williams.
Scenes that seem familiar to him because he behaves similarly himself. Harry Style is trying to “fill a space. This stage is huge and it’s a lonely place,” explains Williams. A place where you’d rather throw around a few phrases so you don’t feel awkward.
The 48-year-old apparently knew a few years ago that the former “One Direction” star could have a steep career. “I think Harry Styles enchanted the whole world just because he was Harry Styles. He has a David Beckham quality to him,” he told Williams in a 2016 interview with Radio Times. There is a place for the exceptional talent, but his music has to be great for it, Williams added at the time.
He also mentions that he met the young musician at the airport back then. Williams had previously attempted to work with Bruno Mars and Swedish producer Max Martin, but received no response from either of them. Upon meeting Harry Styles, he said, “I’ve just spent a week with Bruno Mars and I’m about to spend a week with Max Martin.” The 48-year-old would have said at the time: “You are the new me.” However, he would not give advice to the 20-year-old singer.
“You have to make your own mistakes, that makes you interesting. Your weaknesses, what you don’t succeed, that’s what makes you special,” emphasized Robbie Williams a few months ago in an interview with “Der Standard”. However, the 48-year-old would “be there for him if he needed it” – but that would be a private conversation, according to Williams.
Sources: “The Standard”, “Radio Times”, “The Guardian”
