Harry Styles has donned many hats in his now fifteen-year-long career. First, he was a teenage heartthrob in the biggest boy band in the world. Then, after One Direction’s four-way split, he evolved into a flamboyant solo performer. He’s dabbled in acting and modeling in addition to music, putting his excellent fashion sense to work. His public persona is frequently loud and full of carefree personality.
During this time in the limelight, Harry Styles has never seemed to shy away from attention quite as much as on his latest record, Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally. Styles’ fourth solo record, the follow-up to Grammy-winning Harry’s House, hits with more of a shoulder tap than a punch. Kiss All the Time wants to get lost in its own music rather than make any grand statements. It’s a wallflower album.
“Aperture,” the first track and lead single, depicts a narrator seeking something truer and freer than the complications of celebrity life. Styles delivers vague lyrics with a muted tone, voice almost swallowed by the production. The song’s lack of clarity makes understanding its intent difficult. However, Style’s first live performance of “Aperture” at the 2026 BRIT Awards presented a very specific interpretation of the song.
Unlike his promotional performances for previous albums Harry’s House and Fine Line, Styles doesn’t center the flamboyance of his charisma or showmanship while performing “Aperture”; rather, he shirks the camera even as he sings for thousands of viewers. It begins with Styles clad in office wear—a white button-up, tie, and dark pants that blend into the stage and highlight the upper half of his body. A very traditionally masculine outfit for an artist known for feminine clothing. This costume choice feels confining, both given Styles’ history and the dancers around him. They’re in slightly cropped black tees and jeans, a much freer style of dress.
The performance begins with a choreographed wordless intro. The dancers make isolated movements, such as head turns and synchronized hand waves, mimicked by Styles. For an artist accustomed to performing without choreography, he stays in near-perfect sync. Rather than leading his dancers, he appears to be caught in a trance among them. He’s part of the group, yet alone in their center.
After several seconds of dancing, Styles begins singing and steps out from the dancers onto a narrow strip leading to the B-stage. Screaming fans line both sides of the black floor, yet the negative space around him evokes a sense of isolation. His body language curves inward, away from the crowd rather than embracing it. His white shirt and the camera angles focus the viewer’s eye on him, but muted vocal delivery and the track’s somber, atmospheric tone make Styles seem more exhausted than in control.
As the performance transitions onto the circular B-stage, Styles comes more alive. Only, he sings and dances the minimalist choreography with his back to the camera, performing to his backup singers and band rather than the audience. Once the dancers run out to join the audience, he finally turns to face them and eventually leads a dance break. However, even in the forefront of the performance, Style’s expression remains somber. He appears to be going through the motions, playing the role of the popstar while longing to be anywhere else.
Towards the end of the performance, Styles slips in a little smile as he pops a move. This nod to the stage persona he’s more known for is an intentional clue that he isn’t as miserable as he appears. Rather, Styles is showcasing his album’s themes. Throughout the song, he’s constantly surrounded and highlighted as the one out of place, encircled by others giving far more energy to the performance. Light features prominently throughout, from the sharp contrast between Styles’ white shirt and the black of his surroundings to the stage lights capturing his face amidst the crowd of dancers.
Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally. is a strange record that embraces house-accented production without ever nearing the harsh energy of club music. Styles wants to shirk being the life of the party and fade into the corner of a silent disco. This interpretation of “Aperture” shows the effect on a person of being trapped in the pop music machine while longing for softness and normalcy.
Indeed, the performance is striking as much for its artful withholding as its contrast with the color of Styles’ typical performance style (see “As It Was” and “Late Night Talking” above). While an aperture is any hole or opening into a space, the term is used most frequently to describe the opening of a camera lens that lets in light. For Harry Styles’ BRITs performance, the stage is the aperture, letting light shine on the isolation of stardom.
Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally. is available on all streaming platforms and wherever music is sold.
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