Harry Styles has revealed that seeing Radiohead live in 2025 played a key role in inspiring him to return to touring.
The former One Direction star recently announced his fourth studio album, Kiss All The Time. Disco, Occasionally, along with a new tour, marking his latest chapter as a solo artist. Speaking about the decision to get back on the road, Styles said that attending one of Radiohead’s highly anticipated comeback shows gave him a clear reminder of why performing live matters.
In 2025, the band performed 20 special European shows, playing career-spanning setlists in a series of “in the round” concerts across cities including Madrid, Bologna, London, Copenhagen and Berlin. The run marked one of their most notable live appearances in recent years and drew huge crowds across the continent.
@zanelowe Harry Styles. Wednesday. @Apple Music. #harrystyles ♬ original sound - Zane Lowe
Speaking to Zane Lowe, Styles explained that watching the band perform in Berlin sparked a moment of clarity about his own role as a performer.
“I think dancing in Berlin,” he said when asked what made him want to tour again. “I went to see Radiohead in Berlin, and felt so part of the audience.”
The “Aperture” singer described feeling deeply connected to the crowd while watching the show, recalling the atmosphere among fans.
“I’m watching this and feeling everything that’s happening around me in the crowd,” he said. “There’s people picking up each other’s things and people are bringing each other things. It’s this sense of strangers looking at each other and massaging each other’s shoulders when someone’s emotional and looking into the eyes of a stranger and screaming out a chorus together.”
The moment, he explained, reminded him exactly why he performs.
“I had a moment of like, ‘I’m there so that people can have this’, you know? I’m soundtracking this.”
Styles, who is now 32, has spent the past decade establishing himself as one of the biggest solo artists to emerge from One Direction following the band’s hiatus in 2016. His solo albums, including Harry Styles, Fine Line and Harry’s House, have produced major global hits and cemented his reputation as a major touring draw.
The influence of Radiohead has also been felt by other artists recently. Serge Pizzorno, frontman of Kasabian, said the band’s recent live performances have helped shape his vision for Kasabian’s upcoming summer shows.
Speaking to NME, he said he had recently attended several major concerts while thinking about how to approach his own band’s next run of performances.
“I went to see Oasis, then I went to see Radiohead, then last night I went to see Fred Again.., and all three shows for their own reasons were magnificent,” he said.
“So in my mind now I’m thinking for the summer, we’re heading for a combination of those three shows.”
“Imagine those three melted into something new – and that’s where we’re headed.”
Meanwhile, Nick Cave also previously spoke about being moved by a Radiohead performance after seeing the band at The O2 in London.
Writing on his blog The Red Hand Files, the Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds frontman reflected on the power of the live experience.
“At the Radiohead concert at the O2, I was sitting among twenty thousand people,” he wrote. “Bizarrely, it was the first time I had ever been in the audience at such a large show, and I was stunned by the depth of love in the room – people dancing, screaming, crying, hugging each other, throwing themselves around.”
He added that the moment reminded him of the deeper impact music can have.
“I was struck by the realisation of just how powerful live music is – that a group of individuals can come together and concoct a sound unique to them, and that people can connect with that distinctive vision as if it were their own experience.”
The comments highlight the enduring influence of Radiohead, whose live performances continue to inspire fellow musicians as well as audiences around the world.
Harry Styles has also explained why he’s performing residencies in six cities in favour of a world tour.
He will soon embark on the ‘Together Together’ tour, which will take place in six cities, promoting his new album which is out today.
He’ll play twelve shows at London’s Wembley Stadium, 30 dates at New York’s MSG, and a set of concerts in Mexico City, São Paulo, Amsterdam, Melbourne and Sydney.
He's explained why he will be performing residencies instead of a world tour. Speaking to Zane Lowe for Apple Music, the former One Direction star said: “I think it makes the show better. I think you can build something that doesn’t have to travel every night.
He added that the residencies “allow me to stay in my life while I’m doing it. And therefore I think it allows me to take care of myself better, which I think makes me better at doing the thing.”
He won't rule out touring in the future, clarifying: “It’s not like I’m saying I’ll never travel again, but I want to see what it looks like if you do it a different way – and people in my band have families now and kids, and some aspects of that too. It’s really important to me that they’re on the road, that I would love to have them. I don’t want to make it near impossible for them to be able to come do that with me.”
@consequence Harry Styles previews his upcoming "Together, Together" tour and explains his decision to play residencies. Credit: Apple Music / Zane Lowe Show #harrystyles #togethertogether #livemusic ♬ original sound - consequence
