Now that Harry Styles' self-titled album is finally here for One Direction fans to listen to on a loop, you may be wondering if Harry Styles wrote his album. As you probably already know, the 23-year-old isn't just a singer, but also a talented songwriter. So, yes, Styles did write his album, but he also had some help from producers Jeff Bhasker, Alex Salibian, Tyler Johnson, and Kid Harpoon. He has a "co-writing" credit on all of the songs.
As for the producers, Bhasker, who is listed as the executive producer on Styles' album, he's known for working with fun. on their 2012 album, Some Nights. He also has two Grammys, one for Song of the Year for fun.'s "We Are Young" and one for Record of the Year for Mark Ronson's "Uptown Funk." He's also collaborated with Kanye West.
Salibian has worked closely with Bhasker, and is even part of his production crew. For Young the Giant fans, Salibian contributed guitar, piano, and backing vocals on their 2016 album, Home of the Strange. He is credited as a co-writer and co-producer on Styles' "Sign of the Times."
Then, there is Johnson, who's previously worked with Bhasker as well, including on Pink's "Just Give Me a Reason." He even co-wrote and co-produced Keith Urban's "Gone Tomorrow (Here Today)." Finally, Harpoon is an English singer/songwriter, recognized for his single "The River, the Ocean, The Pearl." He's also co-written several songs for Florence + the Machine, including "Shake It Out" and "Never Let Me Go."
It sure sounds like Styles worked with some talented individuals.
Styles' first solo album is a huge step for the former boy band member. This was his chance to grow as both an artist and a writer. While chatting with Rolling Stone in April as the magazine's cover star, Styles said he was given the chance to write while with 1D, but it wasn't in the way he wanted. He contributed to "Olivia," "Stockholm Syndrome," and "Happily."
"I think it was tough to really delve in and find out who you are as a writer when you're just kind of dipping your toe each time." He continued, "We didn't get the six months to see what kind of sh*t you can work with. To have time to live with a song, see what you love as a fan, chip at it, hone it and go for that ... it's heaven."
Unlike his time with One Direction, Styles had over an entire year to write and record Harry Styles. "I didn't want to write 'stories,'" he confessed. "I wanted to write my stories, things that happened to me. The number-one thing was I wanted to be honest. I hadn't done that before."
Creating his own music was something Styles had been hoping to do for quite awhile. "There were songs I wanted to write and record, and not just have it be 'Here's a demo I wrote,'" he also told Rolling Stone. "Every decision I've made since I was 16 was made in a democracy. I felt like it was time to make a decision about the future ... and maybe I shouldn't rely on others."
Well, he's definitely not completely relying on anyone else to make his dreams come a reality. This album is major for Styles. Based on the songs he's released, it's pretty clear that writing is in his blood.
