Review: ‘As It Was’ Harry Styles, the perfect song?

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by Sophie Reese, Video Editor

Harry Styles announced on Instagram on March 23 that he is releasing a new album called “Harry’s House” on May 20, 2022.

As an avid Harry fan, this immediately made me extremely excited. But to wait so long for an album was hard to hear because it is over a month away. 

Styles then announced via Instagram last week that he was releasing one song from the album along with a music video called “As It Was.” Hearing the news on TikTok of other fellow Harry fans excited to hear the entire song really hyped it up. It was going to be great.

Hearing the first few seconds of the song on TikTok, I was a little skeptical. I didn’t make any quick judgments though as I can’t make a proper opinion on only the first few seconds of a song, so I held out hope.

Waking up Friday morning I quickly took to the internet to see and hear the music video myself.

The child’s voice at the beginning really threw me off at first, as I was not expecting it. But it was nothing I could complain about.

The first seconds of hearing Styles sing lyrics I haven’t heard yet had me hooked from the start. He has a calm sense in his voice that’s a soft tone that I really enjoyed. 

The cinematic aspect of one of the beginning shots where Styles was walking backward as everyone else around him was walking forward was interesting and got my attention quickly.

Keeping with his usual bright eccentric look, Styles wore a bright red jumpsuit with sequins down the side. This was the perfect look for the scene as it complimented the video’s aesthetic. 

Entering the chorus where his voice builds tremendously, I knew that I loved this song before it was even over.

In one scene in the music video, Styles and another person are on a treadmill-esque record player – stuck moving in circles. I interpreted this as Styles moving forward or trying to move forward as fast as he can but is not going anywhere – he’s stuck in place. 

Styles and the other character in the scene are both running but in opposite directions, which I believe symbolizes that he is trying to go back to better times but they are on different paths that do not cross.  

After seeing many TikToks on what this music video could mean and other fans’ interpretations of the song and video, I have come to the conclusion that we might never know what it is truly supposed to mean. However, I like the fact that everyone has different thoughts on it, but all enjoy it greatly. 

The end of the music video is my favorite part as Styles is finally off of the spinning machine and is dancing alone with a big smile on his face. Watching it for the first time, I smiled with him.

I felt that he was free at that moment and was content with being alone as at the very end he is seen leaving with a huge smile.

The only thing I would say that could improve this song is the length of it. I feel like it ended too soon. If it were about 30 seconds longer I would say it is the perfect song.

I overall thought that this song was one of his best pieces. It brings me so much joy when I listen to it and compare my opinions on it to others on TikTok. I can see that so many other people agree with me.