Harry Styles reveals the Radiohead song he lost his virginity to
In a speech honouring Thom Yorke, Harry Styles revealed that he lost his virginity to a Radiohead song way back when.
The ‘As It Was’ singer made a surprise appearance at the Ivor Awards, held in London on May 21st. During the ceremony, which saw the likes of CMAT, Sam Fender, and Lola Young take home key prizes, the former One Direction star took to the stage to honour Yorke.
Yorke received the Academy Fellowship alongside posthumous awardee George Michael. The award has been previously handed to the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Kate Bush, and Paul McCartney.
As Styles honoured Yorke in a “terrifying” speech, he reminisced on Radiohead’s earlier career: “I discovered their songs over time growing up, inhaling the second-hand teenage angst from up the stairs separating my sister’s bedroom from where I sat below doing my homework.”
He added, “I found them again at parties [and] in treasured moments alone.” It was then that he made the shocking admission, “I lost my virginity to ‘Talk Show Host’.”
“I lost my virginity to ‘Talk Show Host,’” Styles said. He then added cheekily, “I lost my virginity to the intro of ‘Talk Show Host’,” a snippet which lasts for approximately ten seconds.
“I cannot overstate how his work has influenced my belief in the purpose of the arts in our world today. And I cannot overstate how much his work continues to influence me,” Styles continued of the Radiohead frontman.
He added wistfully, “It’s always been somewhat of a religious experience to me. Religious in the sense that understanding seemed to go both ways.”
Drawing attention to his own discography, Styles added, “Without ‘Exit Music’ there would be no ‘Watermelon Sugar’. Imagine that. A world without that song. It doesn’t bear thinking about.”
The star also recalled the first time he met Yorke, and admitted he worried that the titan would be “mean to me, and emotionally I would never recover”. However, much to Styles’ delight, Yorke “was friendly and he was kind”.
He finished with a clear message, one taken from the “compassionate” Radiohead star: “Commit to your humour and your heartbreak. Only cowards meet our complicated, beautiful world with distance.”
Style’s appearance was a surprise to many, as the performer is partway through his residency in Amsterdam for his Together Together tour, which will appear in seven total international cities.
Elsewhere at the ceremony, Dublin singer-songwriter called on her fellow musicians to stand up against the worsening sociopolitical climate, noting how “fascism is on the rise” while accepting the coveted award for ‘Best Album’.
Visit here to see the full list of winners on the night, including Lola Young, Sam Fender, Fraser T Smith, Kae Tempest, and Rosalía.
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