Harry Styles joked he wouldn’t be having any ‘nipples’ on display as he swapped his high-energy tour for a one-off performance at The Meltdown Festival on Tuesday.
The singer, 32, has been storming the globe on his Together Together tour, and is set to continue his London leg at Wembley Stadium on Wednesday.
But Harry switched up his music style by taking to the stage for a special performance at the Royal Festival Hall, where he was accompanied by the Jules Buckley Orchestra.
The star has made the surprise move of being the curator for the annual event, following in the footsteps of stars David Bowie and Nile Rogers.
Opening his show, in a clip shared by Variety, Harry told the crowd: ‘Has anyone been to the tour? It’s going to be a little different tonight, if you couldn’t tell… there will be no nipples.’
Turning to the orchestra’s conductor, he then added: ‘Unless… Jules has one too many,’ earning laughter from the crowd.
Harry Styles joked he wouldn’t be having any ‘nipples’ on display as he swapped his high-energy tour for a one-off performance at The Meltdown Festival on Tuesday
Opening with a rendition of Boyfriends, Harry guided the audience through a carefully curated setlist featuring fan favourites Matilda, Two Ghosts and Fine Line, alongside newer material from his latest album Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally. including Paint by Numbers, The Waiting Game, Carla’s Song and Coming Up Roses.
The performance culminated in a moving rendition of Bridge Over Troubled Water, bringing together Styles, the orchestra and choir, that drew a prolonged standing ovation from the 2,700-capacity audience.
Meltdown is the world’s longest-running artist-curated music festival and will be presented as part of the Southbank Centre’s 75th anniversary this year.
Following the announcement, Harry said: ‘I’m deeply honoured to curate the Meltdown festival, especially for the Southbank Centre’s 75th anniversary year. My goal as the curator is to share the music and art that I love, and to celebrate the rich history of the venue’.
‘We both share a passionate belief that music is a vital part of life. It brings us together and the Southbank Centre has been at the heart of it, providing easy access to great music for the past 75 years.
‘I’m incredibly grateful to Southbank for having me, it’s really exciting for me to have this opportunity in such an iconic venue.’
The festival will offer a public programme of interactive, participatory and free events, designed to engage young people across the UK and reflect ways younger audiences increasingly experience culture.
Harry kicked off his record-breaking 12-night Wembley Stadium residency on Friday night, opening to a sold-out crowd as part of his Together Together tour.
The One Direction star is celebrating the release of his fourth studio album Kiss All the Time, Disco Occasionally with a global run, with his London dates already making history as the longest single-artist Wembley residency ever.
In total he will play 12 shows beneath the famous Wembley arch – the most by any artist in a single year, beating Taylor Swift and Take That who have both racked up eight, while Coldplay played ten nights last year.
The residency has been met with rave reviews from Harry’s loyal fans and critics, with the Daily Mail’s Adrian Thrills writing about the ‘triumphant’ first night.
‘It was an emotional night, one that showed just how far Styles, Britain’s only truly global pop sensation, has come since he sprang to prominence with boy-band One Direction in 2010,’ Thrills declared in his four star review.
Among the 80,000 fans at Wembley each night, is Harry’s fiancée Zoe Kravitz, who has already been spotted enjoying a cosy chat with Harry’s mum at one of the concerts.
Looking at ease in each other’s company, Harry’s mum Anne was seen leaning in to the actress, 37, as she placed a hand on her head and whispered into her ear mid song.
Sharing the clip on TikTok, a fan wrote: ‘when you try to act normal but zoe kravitz and your mother in law are in front of you.’
Anne also took to her Instagram as she posed in an iconic ‘Respect your mother!’ T-shirt as a nod to the lyrics in Harry’s recent song Dance No More.
She was also joined by her brother, Harry’s uncle, who wore a top which said: ‘Respect your mother’s brother!’
Harry is believed to be engaged to Zoë after a whirlwind eight-month romance – with the star pictured in April with an enormous diamond ring on her wedding finger.
According to Page Six, the couple are mulling over ‘a small wedding in front of just family and close friends in the UK around Christmas time’.
