by Emily Siansky ‘22

After more than a year’s worth of delays due to Covid-19, Harry Styles finally is back touring and performed on September 18 at the Capital One Arena. For fans who have been anticipating the shows for months and months, Styles delivered. 

“Harry Styles sure knows how to put on a performance,” said senior Jenna Thompson. “The singing and dancing was great, and the way he interacted with the crowd was really fun: at one point we even sang happy birthday to two girls in the audience.” 

Styles opened the show with the single “Golden” which perfectly set the mood for the 90-minute show. The atmosphere was electric, as Styles mixed in some upbeat songs like “Sunflower Vol. 6” and “Adore You,” while also performing slower, sadder songs like “Cherry” and “Falling.” He also played songs from his self-titled first album “Carolina” and “Only Angel.” Paying homage to his days in One Direction, Styles performed a rock version of “What Makes you Beautiful.” The encore included Grammy award winning hit “Watermelon Sugar” and rock anthem “Kiwi,” which made the whole arena shake. 

The setlist was very impressive for only having two released albums. Not only did Styles pull songs from both albums, but he also kept the audience on their toes as to what song was coming next. For those who didn’t get to attend his first concert tour, they got a chance to hear some of those beloved and popular songs live. 

Junior Hannah Friend had an unique experience of the concert and watched the show from the pit. “It was such a positive environment with everyone complimenting each other and everyone was so nice,” said Friend. “There were some parts where people would be shoving through, but for the majority of the night everyone was great and just dancing and singing together.”

The Capital One Arena mandated that all audience members be either vaccinated or show proof of a negative Covid test within 48 hours of the concert. Once at the Arena, though, none of the security guards or event staff were checking vaccine cards or the CLEAR app. Though the policy was set to keep audience members safe, it was not executed in the right way. Because of this, many fans may have felt some sort of unease. For many this was their first indoor concert since the start of the pandemic, so it was somewhat alarming that the safety precautions, including mask-wearing, were only loosely enforced. 

The concert was worth the wait. For many in the audience, it likely didn’t sink in that the concert that they had waited for a year to attend was over. There also was a sense of gratitude in the air. At the end of the night, with all of the boas, cowgirl hats, and gogo boots, it was easy to see that the audience came to have a great time and that’s exactly what they got.