Harry Styles has become the center of attention once again, not for his music this time but for his dance moves in his recent Dance No More music video, which has the internet in stitches. One user commented:
“This is embarrassing.”
The song is from his album Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally, was released with a high-energy visual that largely relied on choreography. However, the internet concentrated on one thing, and that was Harry Styles dancing in shorts in a school gym. It quickly became the talk of the internet.
Viral gym scene leaves the internet speechless
Clips from the sequence spread across social media, sparking a wave of reactions, many of which were critical. Several users called the moment “embarrassing,” questioning both the choreography and styling choices. A user wrote:
“This is embarrassing.”
Some criticism extended beyond the video itself, with a user speculating that years of intense publicity are to blame for Styles’ confidence and willingness to take creative risks:
“Y’all gassed him up so much for reason that he thinks he’s hot shit”
Another user joked about how everyone thought Styles was the man:
“People really trusted this man to save male pop.”
A third added that Styles is in a severe aura debt after that dance:
“The million of aura this dude just lost. Nobody is saving him.”
Not all responses were negative; a netizen complimented the dance while making fun of the styling:
“Those red shorts should be illegal but the choreo is actually fire he ate this”
While another questioned his artistic appeal more generally, claiming that his visual identity frequently overshadows the music:
“Not even hating but half of Harry Styles hype comes from aesthetics and vibes over actual music.”
Another user questioned why Styles was queerbaiting, when he’s been in a relationship with Zoe Kravitz for the past couple of months:
“Why does he keep doing this when everyone knows he’s w Zoe”
A fan praised his ability to generate buzz and dominate online conversation with each release, even joking that it should be taught in universities:
“He disappears for months, drops an absolute cinematic masterpiece of a music video, casually breaks the internet, and refuses to elaborate. The chokehold Harry Styles has on pop culture really needs to be studied in universities.”
Another fan thought of the video as proof of Styles’ continued influence, praising him for elevating the current pop music landscape:
“We really had to endure the most boring era of male pop music just for Harry Styles to come back and show everyone how it’s actually done. The visuals, the aesthetics, the song… he literally never misses. He is carrying.”
Harry Styles’ Dance No More video
Despite the online debate, the video itself is designed as a choreography-first experience. In this video, Harry Styles is positioned in a group, moving in sync with dancers and dancing together, bringing the show rather than serving as a conventional frontman.
Colin Solal Cardo is the director of the video, which progresses from a grounded gym rehearsal to a complete disco-style celebration, with well-organized group routines. Speaking about the song, Styles stated that he wants listeners to feel as though “we’re in this music together” as opposed to merely witnessing a performance from a distance.
Harry Styles told Runner’s World:
“Good electronic music is so good, you know — especially the melodic aspect. When you’re out at night, it’s such a community, but you’re also watching people have such individual experiences,”
He added:
“I wanted to recreate [what] I had on the dance floor, being lost in instrumentation and the musicality. It was so immersive, like, this is how I want to feel when I’m on stage too. I don’t want it to feel like a sermon I’m delivering. I wanted it to feel like, oh, we’re in this music together. Like I’m in it with you.”
After Aperture and American Girls, “Dance No More” is the third major visual release from Styles’ most recent album cycle. The release also coincides with preparations for his upcoming “Together, Together” tour, which is set to begin on May 16 in Amsterdam before heading to major cities including London, New York, Brazil, and Mexico.
Stay tuned to Soap Central for more information.
Edited by Zachary D. Lyngdoh